Military Operation Against Iraq Has Not Yet Been Inevitable

ANKARA - Presidential Foreign Affairs Chief Adviser Tacan Ildem said on Friday that a military operation against Iraq has not yet been inevitable.
Iraqi issue continued to occupy the agenda, Ildem noted.
Recalling that there were interpretations recently that a military operation against Iraq was inevitable, Ildem said, ''however, a military operation against Iraq has not yet been inevitable.'' Ildem stated that peaceful and diplomatic ways have not yet been exhausted, stating that all the related sides should give opportunity to peace.
Reiterating that Turkey attributed great importance to the preservation of territorial integrity and political unity of Iraq, Ildem said, ''we have some expectations valid for Iraq which we call as red lines. In any case, fulfillment of our views is important.''
Ildem also reiterated that Iraq's fully abiding by the U.N. Security Council no:1441 was obligatory, stressing that Iraq has an important responsibility in this respect. Ildem said, ''eruption of any clash in the region will create drawbacks on regional stability. Turkey does not want such a development.''
Ildem said Turkey, who suffered great losses during Gulf War, does not want to meet with the same situation this time.
Stressing importance of report of U.N. weapons inspectors and evaluation of this report at the Security Council, Ildem said that the resolution no 1441 did not enable beginning of a military operation automatically.
Ildem said, ''if there is an obligation for a military operation which we do not desire, international legitimacy principles should be a base. There is no change in this policy of us.''
Noting that consultations between Turkey and the United States both in political and military fields, Ildem referred to contacts of U.S. Under Secretary of Treasury John Taylor and U.S. State Department Under Secretary Marc Grossman.
Pointing out that Turkey had the opportunity to explain its policy in detail during the contacts, Ildem said, ''it is inevitable that Turkish economy will be affected negatively by this undesired operation. The United States is aware of the fact that Turkey does not want any development that will jeopardize the balances in the region in a period in which Turkey has entered a new growth era, and inflation rates have begun to decrease. Therefore, economic support of the United States to Turkey was taken up at the contacts.''
''Since Turkey is one of the regional countries, our making contribution to peace efforts is also important. We have historical ties with regional countries. Naturally, we have been cooperating with these countries to settle peace and stability in the region. It is useful to stress that as Turkey is determining its contributions to a possible military operation on the basis of international legitimacy, it will make an assessment by taking into consideration its position in the region and its historical ties with the regional countries,'' he said.
Ildem emphasized the importance of Gul's visit to the countries in the region and said that messages concerning the implementation of United Nations Security Council's resolutions and cooperation with international society were conveyed to Iraq earlier and will be conveyed from now on.
Responding to the questions about Iraq issue, Ildem said that State Minister Kursad Tuzmen will convey a message of Gul to Iraq President Saddam Hussein during Iraq visit and added that there will be no messages from President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.
Upon another question, Ildem said that Turkey had announced its expectations earlier for many times and those expectations do not change now.
When asked about the expectations of Turkey about Musul and Kerkuk, Ildem said that ''Musul and Kerkuk are regions which have special characteristics both in respect of history and also natural resources. We expect these regions to be benefited by all groups under the authority of the central Iraqi administration. I mean, the claims of certain group or groups on these cities and regions can't be accepted by us. This is one of the red lines. These facts are known by all the concerned sides.''
When asked what kind of demand was asked from the U.S. regarding the compensation of the loss of Turkey in case of a possible operation, Ildem said that the structure of the Turkish economy which has reached the growth trend and which aims to decrease the inflation, should not be damaged. Noting that the Treasury Undersecretariat carried out technical studies and it conveyed these studies to its counterparts, Ildem said that ''I can't give you a figurative guess, but the targets I mentioned have to be maintained. We evaluate all our studies and evaluations in this framework.''
When asked if the difficulty with the U.S. regarding the inspection of the bases has been overcome, Ildem said that ''there has to be a legal basis for the reconnaissance activities that will be carried out in various airports. We must discuss it with a bilateral regulation because the thing that is in question is not a NATO operation. It is a regulation between the U.S. and Turkey. A draft memorandum of understanding has been conveyed to the U.S. side to this end. The technical studies continue.''

ILDEM: ''BOTH TURKEY AND THE TRNC TARGET TO FIND A SOLUTION TO THE CYPRUS QUESTION''
When asked, ''a polemic has been continuing between Justice and Development Party (AK Party) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Rauf Denktas of the TRNC. What is the attitude of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer about this polemic?'' Ildem said, ''the Cyprus question was taken up at a meeting which was held with the participation of President Denktas.''
''Both Turkey and the TRNC target to find a solution to the Cyprus question. The most important thing is that both Turkey and the TRNC considered the plan presented to the sides in Cyprus by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan negotiable,'' he told reporters.
Ildem said that there are some basic subjects that are difficult to accept in the plan, adding that those subjects are land, immigrants, property and security. He said that statement of Denktas who thinks the plan can be negotiated and who said that they are ready for talks as targeting February 28 is an important development.
Noting that Denktas is the side who suggests direct talks and has a constructive approach, Ildem said that if the subjects in Annan Plan which Turkey considers positive are gained, it can be accepted that the foresighted manners of Denktas and TRNC in talks had a role in this gain.
''Demonstrations are held in Cyprus and those can be done in every democratic society and this a sign of healthy working of democratic life. The important thing is talks between sides, not the talks in TRNC or Turkey. We believe that talks which will start on January 7 will reach a positive result with the good intentions of both sides. The significant thing is a solution which will take the realities in Cyprus into consideration. It is also possible to reach a solution at all costs, but this can't be the recipe of a permanent solution. A lasting solution is a solution on the basis of new partnership that will take into consideration the security and sovereign equality of Turkish Cypriots and the balance between Turkey and Greece in any case. The expectations of the Turkish Cypriot people are important, and certainly the expectations of the TRNC people will give a form to these negotiations, and Mr. Denktas is for the moment in intensive consultation process with the parties represented in the TRNC parliament. He prepares for the negotiation process that will start on January 7. As much as the expectations of the Turkish Cypriot people, the historical and conventional rights of Turkish Republic on Cyprus are also important. This should not be forgotten,'' he said.
When asked if Mr. Denktas shared his ''uneasiness'' about this issue with Mr. President, Ildem said that ''I could not clearly understand what you meant by 'uneasiness.' There is no uneasiness which Mr. Denktas conveyed to the President. In fact, Mr. Denktas expressed happiness over the result of the meeting held in the Presidential Palace in which both Prime Minister and Foreign Minister also participated.''
ILDEM: ''AS PRESIDENT SEZER EXPLAINED BEFORE, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO TAKE UNREGISTERED ECONOMY UNDER REGISTRATION''
Ildem referred to the news stories claiming that President Sezer decided to pardon some offenders by taking into consideration their crimes.
''Article 104 of the Constitution, authorizes the President to remit all or part of the sentences imposed on certain individuals on grounds of chronic illness, disability or old age. This authority of the President is restricted with the grounds of chronic illness, disability or old age. Therefore, not the crime, but the health of an offender is taken into consideration. The Forensic Medicine Authority determines chronic illness, disability or old age of the offenders,'' he said.
When asked about the attitude of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer about the statement of Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan who talked about the loss caused by returning of the law on financial zero year to the parliament, Ildem said that ''certainly various concerns can be taken into account. Tax laws are closely interested with the functioning of the economic order. As Mr. President also stated in his reasons of returning back the tax law to the parliament, the thing that is important is to register the unregistered economy. I suppose those who talk about losing 5 trillion liras in one day should also take into consideration the profit that will be gained by taking under control the unregistered economy. Therefore if such an account is made, it can be seen that our daily profit will be more than our losses.''