Powell in Ankara to rebuild Turkey ties after Iraq wrangle

US secretary of state expected to discuss Iraq, fighting terrorism, Cyprus

An Iraqi-Kurdish soldier leaves the Grand Mosque in the Kurdish-controlled town of Dohuk in northern Iraq yesterday. As US forces continued to collaborate with local militia in creating a northern front in Kurdish-controlled territory, the first shipment of UN aid entered northern Iraq after a three-day delay at the border.

ANKARA (AFP) - US Secretary of State Colin Powell is due to meet Turkish officials today on a fence-mending mission to underline Washington’s commitment to the strategic partnership between the two countries, dented by a series of rows over Iraq.

Relations between the United States and Turkey, the only Muslim member of NATO, have deteriorated since the Turkish Parliament on March 1 narrowly rejected US plans to deploy 62,000 troops here to open a northern front in the war.

“In Ankara, Secretary Powell will meet with Turkish leaders to strengthen our relationship,” spokesman Richard Boucher said in Washington, referring to Turkey as a “key ally in a key place at a key time.” Topics to be discussed included Iraq as well as the global war on terrorism and Cyprus, he said.

Powell will “make sure that nobody gets the wrong impression we’re angry with each other. He’s not bringing money, he’s not going to bang his fist on the table,” an Ankara-based US diplomat said.

The State Department’s announcement of Powell’s hastily arranged trip, which will also see him visit NATO headquarters in Brussels, took Ankara by surprise.

The Turkish Parliament’s decision, which US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz slammed last week as a “big mistake,” infuriated the White House.

Powell, however, was not expected to raise the troops issue with Turkish leaders.

Powell might simply ask Turkey, which granted US warplanes overflight rights on the second day of the war, to agree to broaden the agreement under which its air space can be used to help with refueling.

Several Turkish newspapers suggested yesterday that Powell might have new military demands up his sleeve. But Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul dismissed the suggestion, saying: “What we know right now is that Powell is visiting an ally country. There is nothing planned.”

Powell was expected to meet here this morning with Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, and possibly with armed forces chief of staff, General Hilmi Ozkok.

In Ankara, Powell will continue to hammer home Washington’s opposition to Turkish troops entering northern Iraq, an area controlled by Kurdish forces allied with the United States.

Diplomats said other issues, such as the future status of the divided island of Cyprus, Turkey’s drive to join the European Union and the “war on terror” will also be on the agenda of Powell’s visit. “The visit will focus more on bilateral issues than on Iraqi-related contingencies,” according to a Turkish diplomat. “It’s a reaffirmation of our strategic relations... (to) make sure recent developments do not lead to a weakening of our strategic relationship,” the diplomat added.

The two countries could also discuss aid for Turkey to help it overcome the economic difficulties of the war, after Ankara lost out on a promised $6 billion (5.5-billion-euro) aid package from Washington when Parliament rebuffed US overtures on troop deployments. Erdogan said he was writing to all members of the US Congress to explain the situation in Turkey where over 90 percent of the population is against the war.