Washington: "Turkey Doesn't Own Iraq" -Hurriyet Feith: "Iraqi Integrity Should Be Preserved" -Hurriyet A Key Test for Rice - Sabah Bomb Panic in Incirlik - Sabah British Ambassador Westmacott to Turkey: "We are Aware of Your Worries" - Milliyet Ankara Visit Is A Key Test for Rice - Milliyet US Press: "Rice Has A Difficult Mission in Turkey" - Turkiye Ankara Summit for Rice and Lavrov - Turkiye FM Gul: "The US Should Do More to Eliminate Terrorists in Northern Iraq" - Turkiye TGS Intelligence Report: "Kurdish Armed Forces To Be Established in Iraq" - Aksam
OPINION MAKERS
Kurds in Iraq Happy about the Election Results - Radikal US-Russian Summit in Ankara - Radikal Election Fiasco Confession from Iraqi Interim Government - Cumhuriyet Iraq Warning from Gul to US - Yeni Safak From Gul to US: "Take Action for Kirkuk" - Zaman
BRIEFING
Pentagon Undersecretary Feith Comments: In an interview with "Hurriyet," Pentagon Undersecretary Douglas Feith said `Turkish views about Iraq are considered important by the US and always taken into account in US policies'. In response to a question about Turkish concerns for the Iraqi elections, Feith said that the Kirkuk problem ought to be solved by the Iraqi people and that the US supports the preservation of Iraqi integrity.
SecState Rice's Upcoming Visit: All papers report about the upcoming visit of the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Turkey. "Vatan", "Posta" and "Milliyet" cite `The International Herald Tribune' as source to say that `in a way this visit will be a key test for the Secretary in her efforts to ease the tension in Turkish-US relations'. "Radikal" and "Turkiye" report about the meeting that will take place in Ankara on Saturday night with Rice and the Russian FM Lavrov. Rice and Lavrov will discuss preparations for a summit between US President Bush and Russian President Putin in Slovakia on February 24.
Turkey Seeks British Support for the Problems in Iraq: "Milliyet" reports that Turkey seeks British support to convey its concerns about Iraq to the US Administration. Within this framework, Turkish envoy to Iraq Osman Koruturk recently held high-level meetings in London. British Ambassador to Ankara Peter Westmacott told "Milliyet" that his country understands the concerns Turkey has over Iraq and has already issued the necessary warnings to the Kurds.
Turkish General Staff (TGS) Intelligence Report about Iraq: "Aksam" reports that according to a TGS intelligence report, Barzani and Talabani are planning to join their Peshmerge forces in order to establish Kurdish Armed Forces in Iraq.
EDITORIAL OPINION: Iraq; The Middle East
"US-Turkey and Iraq" Ali Sirmen commented in the leftist-opinion maker "Cumhuriyet" (2/3): "Not only Turks, but also American strategists admit the fact that Washington does not care about Turkey's concerns about northern Iraq. The US declared the PKK as a terrorist organization, but took no action and assumed no responsibility even though the area is under American control. The US continues to commit itself to the territorial integrity of Iraq, but it only stands by and watches statements from Talabani and Barzani that tell a very different story. . The Kurdish card is no longer just a US policy option for the Middle East and Iraq - it now must be taken as a given. The US will not give up the Kurdish issue as its `trump card' in both the Iraqi political process and the Broader Middle East Initiative. Given these facts, it would be very wrong for Turkey to be reluctant to pursue a firm policy on Iraq out of fear that it may clash with Washington. Turkey should not underestimate its influence as a regional power, because any implementation of American policy that does not take Turkey into account will eventually harm the interests of both Ankara and Washington."
"Finally, Diplomacy is at Work in Middle East" Sami Kohen observed in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (2/3): "Egypt has conducted a kind of silent diplomacy that successfully paved the way for the upcoming Israel-Palestine summit next Tuesday. The fact that this summit is taking place is historically important, because for the first time in four years the leaders of Israel and Palestine will have a face-to-face meeting. There won't be an agreement like the one at Camp David, but if the summit can at least provide a consensus on a ceasefire and joint security measures and open the door for a peace process, it should be considered a big success. Both leaders will certainly be under attack from militants, so reaching agreement on security and a ceasefire will not be an easy task. Even if the two leaders agree, implementation could present problems. On this matter, both leaders will need strong foreign and domestic support. Obviously, there will be a lot of opportunities for Turkish diplomacy to have an impact in the post-summit process." EDELMAN
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