ANKARA - Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said Sunday Turkey kept its promises with the cross-border ground operation it carried out in the north of Iraq.
Attending a TV programme on Kanal 7, Babacan said, "we said time and scope would be limited, the operation was concluded in eight days. We said limited number of troops, a limited number of troops would enter and withdraw. We said only terrorist organization would be targeted, and even a single civilian was not hurt."
Babacan said the international support to terrorist organization PKK was very low and a serious blow was cast to PKK's physical capacity. He said the support PKK received from citizens of Kurdish origin had considerably dropped.
Babacan underlined that the ground operation showed that Turkey had no hidden agendas over Iraq.
-CHENEY'S VISIT-
Commenting on U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney's upcoming visit, Babacan said Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Iraq, Lebanon, counter-terrorism and energy issues would be discussed during the visit.
When asked about NATO's demand from member countries to increase its number of soldiers in Afghanistan, Babacan pointed out that Turkey had responsibilities as a NATO member and said after military and political assessments they would reach a decision on the issue.
(OZG-MS)