Turkey says Operation "Northern Watch" ended

AFP via Babelfish translation | March 22, 2003

[HAL9000]

The operation "Northern Watch" ended, announces Ankara

The operation américano-British "Northern Watch", of monitoring of the zone of air exclusion of the north of Iraq, ended because of the war in this country, announced to Saturday the Turkish Minister for the Foreign Affairs Abdullah Gul.

"This decision was made in agreement with the rules" laid down for this operation and does not constitute a "political decision", affirmed Mr. Gul with television NTV.

The operation had been setting-up after the war of the Gulf in 1991 to prevent the Iraqi forces from crushing the Iraqi Kurdish rebels in the north of the country.

A military source in Ankara had recently explained to the AFP why "Northern Watch" was "a recognition and surveillance mission", and that this one was consequently "to end with the beginning of the American military operation" against Iraq.

The operations of monitoring were carried out since the Turkish base of Incirlik, in the south of the country, where about fifty American and British planes are currently based.

One second zone of air exclusion had also been established in the south of Iraq.

[HAL9000]

I would have expected this sort of announcement from the Pentagon, not Ankara.

[teletech]

Time will tell if this is true.

[Cicero]

I suspect it's part of the Turkish generals' plan to seize the northern oil fields. They must not be permitted to betray us in time of war and profiteer from their betrayal.

I read it as an announcement that their deal with the U.S. is off. All the news emanating from Turkey seems to to be falling together as parts of a calculated plan to take advantage of the confusion of the war to grab northern Iraq and its oil.

We must seize the oil fields first, so Turkey is put in the position where they must make a decision to attack us, rather than us being put into the position of having to decide whether to attack them. It would destroy the whole lesson of the war if Turkey got away with such behavior.

[tessalu]

Turkey has been punching her fingers in her best friend's eye, and now what will she do when she needs help? Has she got the nerve to ask the USA for help after what she has done?
Now, no one has much confidence in her at all. She looks like a deceiver and one who can not be trusted.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

This Turkey thing is starting to look serious!

OFFICIAL BUMP(TOPIC)LIST

[teletech]

Turkey has been punching her fingers in her best friend's eye, and now what will she do when she needs help? Has she got the nerve to ask the USA for help after what she has done? Now, no one has much confidence in her at all. She looks like a deceiver and one who can not be trusted.

Since the new Turkish government thinks were the evil infidels, they wouldn't ask us for a dime now, would they? Nah.... They wouldn't do that. If this didn't wake us up NOTHING WILL!

[Porterville]

I guess those Turkeys chickened-out!!

[Styria]

That's not too wise while Russia and Greece still dislike them.

[pkpjamestown]

You should change your name to Kalchas!