Swedish Parliamentarians` Passage To Northern Iraq Is Not Safe

ANKARA (A.A) - 14.08.2002 - Turkey said on Wednesday that no permission was given to passage of Swedish parliamentarians to Northern Iraq due to changing security conditions, expressing sorrow over the leakage of the written communication between the two foreign ministries to the press.
Upon a question about the issue in the weekly news conference, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Yusuf Buluc confirmed that no permission was given to Swedish parliamentarians` passage to Northern Iraq via Turkey due to security reason.
``The decision was taken due to current security conditions, which don`t permit such a passage,`` told Buluc to reporters, adding that when these conditions improve, the passages will be rearranged.
``Turkey is also sorry if Swedish parliamentarians` not paying such a visit caused any difficulty,`` Buluc said.
Meanwhile, Turkey didn`t approve the attitude of Swedish side which leaked the letter of Swedish Foreign Minister Lindh sent to Foreign Minister Gurel about the issue, to the press. Buluc said that Turkey found this attitude of Sweden strange as it shared the communications between high political officials with the press.
Swedish Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh wrote a letter to Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Sukru Sina Gurel asking Turkey to allow Swedish parliamentarians` safe passage to Northern Iraq.