BY SAMI KOHEN
MILLIYET- A typical example of a conference resulting in a consensus is that everybody is happy with the common declaration and the agreements reached. This week’s conference in Egypt on the Iraq issue was considered very successful. Turkey is particularly pleased with it because its declaration was in line with Ankara’s wishes. The take on Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul’s speech at the conference and results of bilateral contacts were quite positive. For example, the declaration includes Ankara’s views on Iraq’s political future, such as protecting its territorial integrity and establishing a united (federal and democratic) state structure. Another important point concerns holding elections as scheduled, that is, on Jan. 30 with full nationwide participation. Although such countries as Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia seem to want a delay, Turkey is sticking with this date and the goal of broad participation. The declaration also includes the issue of terrorist activities in Iraq. The importance of this paragraph for Turkey is that it forces the Iraq government to fight the PKK terrorist group. Anyhow, the Iraq government said during the conference that it was ready to put together a border security agreement with Turkey. Gul also issued important messages and warnings in his speech. One of them was his call to Iraqi Kurdish leaders not to try to alter the region’s population makeup. This referred to recent developments in Kirkuk which Gul warned might have dangerous results. In addition, during his meeting with US Secretary of State Colin Powell, Gul was quick to reiterate his concerns about the PKK. I wonder what will come of this.
This conference was held in order to discuss Iraq’s future. However, bringing 20 countries and institutions together made for a larger agenda. For example, the Palestinian issue was discussed at a separate meeting by the US, the UN, the EU and Russia. The consensus reached during the conference showed that the international community didn’t favor the US attack on Iraq, but had taken a pragmatic stance on events there as soon as possible. Such countries as Iran and Syria and others which have opposed US Iraq policy like France and Russia took a more moderate and compromising stance. French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier’s statement reflected the realistic bent which ensured consensus at the conference: ‘We know the stance of various countries before the war. However, now we should look to the future. It’s our common duty to end the instability in Iraq’.