‘ANKARA MAY ALLOW US ARMS SHIPMENTS VIA INCIRLIK BASE’
Today’s Zaman
March 23 2009
Turkey
There have been signals coming from Ankara that not only US troops but
also their arms may be allowed to be transported via Turkish soil,
i.e., via the Incirlik air base in the country’s south, Turkish
government sources have said.
"If we are going to make a fresh start in our relations with the
US, then Turkey has to act positively. This means that Ankara is
ready to talk with the US about both the passage of American troops
and arms via Turkish soil. But this does not mean that Turkey will
accept all US requests," said the same sources, speaking to Today’s
Zaman on condition of anonymity. As a reflection of a new period in
Turkish-US relations under President Barack Obama, Ankara is prepared
to talk with Washington without any prejudice and in a positive mood,
said the same sources.
Today’s Zaman, meanwhile, learned that the US has already initiated
dialogue with Turkey to see if it can use this country’s soil in
withdrawing most of its soldiers from Iraq by August 2010, said the
Turkish government sources.
"The US has currently been making a cost-benefit analysis of
withdrawing its troops from Turkey, Jordan and Kuwait. But Washington
has already started testing the waters with Turkey over Ankara’s policy
on using Turkish soil for this purpose," said the government sources.
President Obama announced recently that most American troops would
be withdrawn from Iraq by August 2010. Around 35,000 US troops are
expected to stay in Iraq to aid with training, civilian protection
and counterterrorism.
The US invasion of Iraq under the George W. Bush administration has
strained the long friendship between the US and Turkey, which are
close NATO allies. Turkey’s refusal in March 2003 to allow US troops
to use Turkish soil during the invasion brought relations to their
most strained point; however, things have gradually improved between
the two nations. The US’s supply of real-time intelligence to Turkey
since November 2007 — critical in accurately pinpointing targets of
the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq while
avoiding collateral damage — that has enabled the Turkish bombardment
of PKK targets marked a positive turn in relations.
Prior to Obama’s planned visit to Turkey on April 6-7 at the end
of his European tour, Ankara has been sending positive signals to
Washington as an indication of its desire to further restore ties
among the two allies, a move which is intended to restart the period
of the two nations being natural allies.
Still, Obama’s choice on whether to fulfill his election pledge and
recognize the 1915 events under Ottoman rule as "genocide" of Armenians
remains a poisonous issue in relations between Turkey and the US.
However, Professor Ahmet Davutoglu, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s foreign policy advisor, who was in Washington last week,
stated his belief that Obama’s visit would be very successful. "Nothing
can shatter this successful visit," he said.
Davutoglu’s remarks have given a strong indication, among others,
that Turkey may even soften its existing policy of not allowing
arms and heavy military equipment to be transported through Turkey’s
Incirlik air base in the south, which has played a central role as
a cargo hub in the US’s war in Iraq.
Prime Minister Erdogan said earlier that Turkey could allow US troops
to use Incirlik for their withdrawal but cannot permit the transport
of military equipment.
As Foreign Minister Ali Babacan stated previously, Erdogan, as the
head of the government, will decide on the issue of opening up Turkish
soil for the US withdrawal.
But government sources stated that Turkey’s approach to any formal
US demand of using Turkish soil for both troop withdrawal and arms
shipment will form one of the legs and an important aspect of the
new period in Turkish-US relations.
"This means that Turkey will talk to the US without any prejudice —
i.e., including the possible transfer of arms via Incirlik," they said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress