POLATLI - Opposition Republican People`s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal said on Saturday that intervention in Iraq without having international legitimacy and Turkey`s taking part in this intervention could cause very serious problems for Turkey.
Responding to questions of journalists about Iraq in Polatlý town of Ankara, Baykal said that the U.S. needed support and it wanted Turkey to send soldiers to Iraq.
Noting that the hesitations of the government were not overcome yet, Baykal said that the issue of rendering ineffective 6,000 PKK militants in north of Iraq constituted one of the problems.
Baykal stated that although militants were in the U.S. list of terrorist organizations, they were freely moving in north of Iraq and no initiative was taken to render them ineffective.
Baykal said that this issue made difficult Turkey`s making military cooperation with the U.S., adding that the place where Turkey would deploy soldiers and where it would ensure logistic support didn`t become clear.
Baykal remarked that the issue would be taken up during the National Security Council (NSC) meeting this month, asserting that a positive framework which would ensure Turkey to take a decision was not formed yet.
Baykal commented that the government didn`t give information to them about its Iraqi policy and that they got information from other sources.
(ÖÞ) 13.09.2003