ISTANBUL - NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said on Sunday that NATO Heads of State and Government Summit was being held in a very important period.
De Hoop Scheffer told a press conference that he could not comment on Turkey's possible role in democratization of the Middle East.
Asked if Turkey could contribute to education and training efforts in Iraq, de Hoop Scheffer said that he met with Turkish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul but refrained from replying to the question.
De Hoop Scheffer noted that Turkey had a very important role and that role would continue in the future.
Refraining from commenting on possible contributions of the Turkish government, de Hoop Scheffer said that he did not know what kind of a decision the Turkish government would make.
Asked if the European Union (EU) would undertake a complementary role in case NATO did not undertake the role of training Iraqi security units, de Hoop Scheffer said that he discussed the issue with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana but the EU did not exactly know the answer of the question.
De Hoop Scheffer said that the Iraqi government was trying to coordinate efforts on its own but expressed belief that the Iraqi government should ask for assistance of other countries.
The NATO Heads of State and Government Summit will take place in Istanbul between June 28 and 29.
(BRC) 27.06.2004