Anatolia News Agency, Turkey
Oct 13 2007

Premier says Turkey does not need advice on Iraq incursion

Istanbul, 12 October: Justice & Development (AK) Party Chairman and
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan harshly criticized western
countries that did not take any steps against the terrorist
organization PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party]. Erdogan, who addressed
his party members in Istanbul, said that Turkey lost over 30 people
over the past one month.

"They (PKK terrorists) can not be humans. I condemn the expression
(we recognize PKK as a terrorist organization but…) by the West.
This matter would have no ‘buts’. We do not act emotionally. Just
because we have not acted so, we showed patience, but now, we expect
sanctions," he said.

"Nobody asked nobody’s permission while coming from tens of thousands
of kilometres away to hit Iraq. We do not need anybody’s advise
regarding a military operation into north of Iraq," Erdogan
continued.

"We can not tolerate any operations that would damage Iraq’s
territorial integrity. We are not keen on any operations on its
political unity," he added.

[The commercial and independent-in-content Istanbul NTV Online in
Turkish [1] adds at 1345 gmt: "The democrats are
hurting the future of the United States. We will not be deterred. Let
the relations break from where they are thin. The Foreign Affairs
Committee is dragging the United States to a different adventure if
it can have the Armenian Patriarch address the meeting just because
he is the world’s Armenian Patriarch. On the other hand, however,
Patriarch Mutafyan goes from here to there and they do not listen to
him. We are undertaking the necessary initiative. We do not want the
bill to pass from the House of Representatives. We will take the
necessary steps, continue on our path."]