U.S. Says It Can Persuade Iraqis to Accept Turks
By Jonathan Wright
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration said on Tuesday it was confident it could bring reluctant Iraqi leaders around to the idea of accepting Turkish troops under a proposal approved by the Turkish parliament.
The Iraqi Governing Council of 24 leaders chosen by the United States is wary of Turkish troops because of historic sensitivities, especially among the Kurds in the north, and worries that the Turks might come with ulterior motives.
But the United States needs all the security assistance it can obtain in Iraq and sees Turkish troops as ideal partners because of Turkey's secular Muslim tradition.
The White House and State Department said the United States welcomed the Turkish parliamentary vote on Tuesday which gave the government authority to deploy the troops.
In Colorado, where he spoke with reporters ahead of a two-day meeting of NATO defense ministers, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld welcomed the Turkish offer.
"It is appreciated," he said. "You have Iraqis all across the spectrum -- some who will be very happy, some who will be worried, some who will be neutral. Some won't have an opinion."
"Now, we will simply have to work with the Iraqis. And the (U.S. military's) Central Command will begin the task of seeing how and in what ways that might happen if, in fact, it's going to happen."
"Turkish troops would contribute to stability in Iraq and we will be consulting closely with the Turkish government over the details of Turkish participation," said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.
AWARE OF IRAQI RESERVATIONS
The spokesman said the United States was aware of the reservations of Iraqi leaders but noted that the Iraqi Governing Council had not made a statement on the subject.
"We believe these things can be worked out (and) should be worked out because Turkish troops can make a contribution to stability. We will be working on all the details ... to make sure that the Iraqis agree with us on that," he added.
But the spokesman declined to say whether the Governing Council had a veto over the Turkish deployment. "The coalition (U.S. occupation authority) is very much in charge of the security situation," a senior U.S. official added.
"Our view would still be that they (the Iraqi leaders) should keep an open mind and try to work this out," said the State Department official, who asked not to be named.
The Governing Council has no military force under its command and does not even control Iraqi government finances, which remain under U.S. administrator Paul Bremer.
Earlier on Tuesday, representatives of Iraqi parties said the council members had all agreed to reject Turkish troops but a council member said later there was no joint decision.
The Kurds, mindful of the long conflict between the Turkish government and their fellow Kurds in southeastern Turkey, are the most vociferous opponents of the deployment.
Analysts say the Shiite of southern Iraq may also have reservations about Sunni Turkish troops, partly because of several centuries of imperial rule under the Ottoman Turks.
Even Sunni Muslims from central and western Iraq are wary of troops from any neighboring country.
But the United States, with nearly 140,000 troops in the country, is anxious for all the support it can obtain.
"If some large number of troops are available from a country that's interested in seeing a stable Iraq and that contributes to the security situation and relieves the stress on other forces ..." that's a good thing," Rumsfeld said.
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