Brussels, 13/04/2007 (Agence Europe) - The European Union reacted on Friday to statements from Ankara on a possible cross-border operation by the Turkish army into Iraq, calling on Turkey to resolve the Kurdish problem peacefully and to continue to play a constructive role in efforts to stabilise the situation in Iraq. “The European Union is following closely the developments in the region. Our hope and the interest of all involved is that possible differences are dealt with in a peaceful manner. The stability of Iraq is in our common interest. The EU recognises the constructive role Turkey plays in the area. In this context, it is important that Turkey continues to play such a constructive role,” the spokeswoman for Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told press. The spokeswoman for EU High Representative for the CFSP Javier Solana stressed that Iraq's territorial integrity had to be respected.
On Thursday, the chief of Turkey's general staff, General Yasar Büyükanit called for a military operation into northern Iraq. “An operation into Iraq is necessary,” he said, indicating that the Turkish army had already carried out several major offensives against Kurdish separatists in the south east of Turkey. Last Monday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was issued strong criticism of Iraqi Kurdish leaders, in particular of the president of Iraqi Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani, who was reported as saying that, “if Turkey intervenes on the Kirkuk issue, we will become involved in the situation in Diyarbakir and other Turkish towns”. “Barzani is going too far,” Mr Erdogan said. Faced with the possibility of further conflict, no matter how localised, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki tried on Wednesday to calm things, stating that Iraqi foreign policy was a matter for the central government in Baghdad. “At the heart of Iraqi foreign policy is the commitment to establishing the best possible relations with our neighbours, non-interference in their internal matters and not allowing them to interfere in internal Iraqi matters,” he said.
The great worry for the Iraqis is that all this may cause friction at the second conference of Iraqi's neighbouring countries, which is due to take place in Sharm El-Sheik on 4 May. The first meeting, on 10 March in Baghdad, was held at ambassador level, and the EU did not take part. The second will be at ministerial level and will bring together Iraq's neighbours, including Turkey, and the major powers. At this point, it is still unclear whether the EU will be invited to attend the meeting in Sharm El Sheik, despite the German presidency's oft repeated wish to be included. (fb/hb)