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Turkish National Security Council Asks Parliament For War Approval
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| “The enemy will not enter Baghdad's suburbs because he will die,” Saddam |
ANKARA,
February 1 (News Agencies) - Turkey will soon have to decide how far
it will go in its support for Western military allies in a possible
war with its neighbour Iraq, observers said Saturday, February 1, as
Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein vowed to kill one million “enemies” if
they attack Baghdad.
Turkey’s
influential National Security Council, which brings together top army
commanders and the civilian leadership, asked the government Friday to
seek parliamentary approval for military measures if war breaks out
against Baghdad, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"Although
Turkey prefers a peaceful resolution, it will not refrain from taking
measures to protect its national interests if a military operation (on
Iraq) becomes inevitable," the council said in a statement.
The
Council's recommendation, which by law the government must give top
priority, came after the powerful military warned that Turkey would
have no say in the future of the region if it opts out of
participation in a possible conflict, the Turkish press said Saturday.
"The
view that participating in a U.S.-led coalition is the most viable way
to minimize Turkey's losses in a war... has gained weight in the
National Security Council," an editorial in the liberal Radikal
daily said.
"If
political initiatives (for a peaceful resolution) fail, Turkey will
give active support to the U.S.-led international coalition," it
added, quoting sources close to the Council meeting.
The
Turkish military has long pressed the government to make up its mind
on a possible war on Iraq. At a press briefing last month, top army
officials pointed out that any kind of decision on Iraq was better
than indecision.
However,
the NATO-member country has frustrated its key ally, the United
States, by delaying its final word on Washington's requests for help
against Iraq, including the deployment of U.S. soldiers on Turkish
territory and the use of several air bases and ports.
Friday's
Council statement specifically brought up the constitutional article
required parliament to judge on whether to allow foreign troops to be
deployed on Turkish soil and whether to send Turkish soldiers abroad.
The
council did not, however, make reference to the possible opening of
Turkish air bases for U.S. use.
Saddam
Intensifies Rhetoric
Meanwhile,
Iraqi President Saddam Hussein vowed Saturday, February 1, to kill one
million enemy soldiers if they try to take Baghdad but offered to
cooperate with the U.N. disarmament process after inviting the chief
UN weapons inspectors back to Iraq.
"The
enemy will not enter Baghdad's suburbs because he will die. Even if
they send a million soldiers, our boys will kill them," Saddam
told senior military aides.
"The
enemy will land in remote regions and film it," the Iraqi
strongman said, according to reports released to the official press.
Saddam
charged that the "enemy media will then start saying that they
are at some distance from Ramadi (west of Baghdad) or somewhere else
and now on its way to invade this or that city.
"This
is how they are going to put on their show," he added as U.S.
President George Bush warned that war could be just weeks away unless
the Baghdad regime disarms in line with U.N. resolutions.
As
Washington presses the U.N. Security Council to authorise war, the
press said Saddam had reviewed with top aides, including Defence
minister Sultan Hashem and his own son, Qussay, strategies to defeat
an enemy landing while limiting Iraqi losses.
"When
the enemy lands, he ensures air protection. And when you attack to
destroy him, he will destroy you with his air forces," the
president warned.
"Have
you taken this into account in training and what measures have you
taken to surround and destroy the enemy without being destroyed
yourself from the air," he asked.
"The
force which counters an enemy landing must be close to it. For that we
have to spread troops across the desert at the risk of exposing them
to enemy fire and our training must be carried out in line with this
theory. Otherwise it will not be realistic.
Saddam
said that in the event of war U.S. troops would be landed in an
unpopulated region, such as the deserts of the west, and in the
Al-Jazira region between Mosul and Samarra.
Mussa
warns war will not bring about democracy
In
a separate related development, the Secretary General of the Arab
League, Amr Mussa, said that a U.S.-led war to topple Iraqi President
Saddam Hussein will not produce a democracy in the oil-rich country.
Mussa
was speaking to a German weekly magazine, Focus, in an interview due
to be published on Monday and said: “War cannot produce democracy.
(Democracy) is achieved without using force."
Asked
what he thought about the possibility of a U.S. military invasion of
Iraq leading to U.S. forces being stationed in the country for several
years to back up whatever government replaced the current Baghdad
regime, Mussa said: "That should not happen."
"Ask
Arabs if they can accept that," he added. Mussa insisted
United Nations arms inspectors should be allowed to complete their
mission in Iraq before the UN Security Council judges whether Baghdad
has complied with its demands that it abandon any weapons of mass
destruction it might possess.
Mussa
said in Syria on Friday the 23-nation Arab League was "opposed to
any military attack" on Iraq.
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