Tan: There Should Not Be Any Attempt To Change Kirkuk's Demographic Structure

ANKARA - Recalling that Kirkuk's final status has not been determined yet, Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan stressed on Wednesday that, what was important at that stage, was that there should not any attempt to change demographic structure of Kirkuk.
Speaking at a weekly press conference, Tan told reporters that Kirkuk was a city where various ethnical groups were living together.
Stating that there should not any attempt to change demographic structure of Kirkuk and that ethnical groups in the city should live together in peace and safety, Tan underlined that those principles would also be the basis of the city's status that would be determined in the future.
He noted that various groups in Iraq, neighbor countries to Iraq and international community had sensitivities about the future of Kirkuk, stating that those sensitivities stemmed from the issue's vital connection with regional stability, peace and balance. Noting that the fact that Iraq should prosper and live in peace and stability should be taken into consideration when defining the final status of the city of Kirkuk, spokesman Tan added that ''those were the facts that Turkey always underlined''.
(EÖ-ULG) 07.07.2004