Turkish Parliament Speaker: Parliament To Continue Its Contributions To Solution Of Iraq Issue

ANKARA - The parliament would continue to contribute to international efforts aiming to conclude Iraq issue, Turkish Parliament Bulent Arinc said on Friday.
Arinc, who attended a meeting of parliament speakers of neighbor countries to Iraq in Jordan, returned to Turkey.
At Ankara's Esenboga Airport, Arinc told reporters that parliament speakers of countries neighbor to Iraq had undertaken a special responsibility to help Iraq overcome its problems.
Arinc said that participation of representatives of international organizations in the meeting confirmed international community's commitment to ''enable a prosperous Iraq, territorial integrity, sovereignty and national unity of which had been preserved.''
That commitment of the international community was the same with Turkey's Iraq vision, Arinc stated.
Arinc quoted himself as saying in the meeting that Iraq's sovereignty and independence should be resettled, its national unity and territorial integrity should be preserved, and Iraqi people should determine their own future on their own by choosing the political system they desired.
All Iraqi groups should be represented in the new Iraq state in line with their population, Arinc said.
Arinc stressed importance that neither of the groups should feel itself excluded for the peace and stability of Iraq.
''I condemned torture and inhuman behaviors of occupier forces towards some Iraqi prisoners. I said during the meeting that reactions around the world to torturing of Iraqi prisoners were pleasing for the rule of law,'' Arinc said.
Arinc recalled that he held bilateral meetings with parliament speakers of some participating countries.
Parliament Speaker Arinc said that he recalled Iran's decision to take the operation of Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport from Turkish company in his meeting with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mehdi Karoubi.
Arinc said, ''I stressed that this decision can have a negative impact on other Turkish investments to be made in Iran.''
Karoubi charged two deputies to deal with the problem, Arinc stated.
Arinc said that he contributed to the final statement of the meeting adopted unanimously by expressing all of Turkey's views.
The statement included a paragraph upon Turkey's proposal which foresaw that Iraq should not shelter terrorist and armed groups which posed a threat for neighboring countries and to support efforts exerted to eliminate such groups, Arinc noted.
Arinc, who delivered a speech at the meeting on Wednesday, called on Iraqi people to join their forces, leaving aside their ethnic and sectarian thoughts.
Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc also said that all neighboring and regional countries to Iraq should undertake responsibility for democratization, security and stability of Iraq.
Parliament speakers of Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Turkey attended the two-day meetings.
Representatives of the United Nations, the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly and the Arab Inter-parliamentary Union were also in attendance.
(BRC-AÖ) 14.05.2004