[Happy2BMe]

[xJones]

Considering how the Turkish Parliment just dissed the U.S. military, they shouldn't be counting on us for support.

[Happy2BMe]

[Happy2BMe]

Polls show as much as 94 percent of the Muslim-dominated Turkish public opposes a war with Iraq.

Turkey's paliment dealt a stunning blow to U.S. war planning Saturday by voting against a bill allowing in American combat troops to open a northern front against Iraq. Before the vote, 50,000 Turks staged an anti-war rally near parliment as 4,000 police stood guard.

They chanted "No to War" and "We dont want to be America's soldiers." Some carried banners that read: The people will stop this war." Hundreds of Turks celebrated in the streets of central Ankara, shouting anti-U.S. slogans.

"We are all Iraqis . . We ill not kill, we will not die," they chanted. They also accused the Islamic-rooted Justice party of "collaborating with Washinton.

Washington had been so sure of winning approval from close ally and NATO member Turkey, that ships carrying U.S. tanks are waiting off Turkeys' coast for deployment and the U.S. military has thousands of tons of military equipment ready to unload at the southern Turksih port of Iskenderun.

For weeks, the Bush administration had been pressing Turkey to agree to a possible northern front, which would split Saddam Hussein's army between the north and the south, likely making a war shorter and less bloody.

The motion would have empowered Turkey's gobernment to authorize the basing of up to 62,000 troops, 255 warplanes, and 65 helicopters. In exchange, Washington promised $15 billion in loans and grants to cushion the Turkish economy from impact of war.

[Happy2BMe]

Turkey prepares to stake claim in Iraq's oil fields

Turkey eyes Iraqi oil fields in midst of war rumbling.

Iraqi oil fields will be prime target.

Kurdish army will try to capture nearby oil-rich areas in case of war.

Justice Looms for Saddam, Cronies

An ‘Iraq winter’ haunts Turkey

Iraqi Kurds Eye Oil Revenue Dreams

Turkey weighs economic, political costs of a Gulf war

Turkey points its N. Iraq military deployment at… the Kurds

U.S. Envoy: Turkish Troops Would Be Under Coalition Command if They Go Into Iraq

Kirkuk in The Modern Times

Turkey also wants U.S. troops to take over the Kirkuk and Mosul oil fields.

Turkey and Iran eye post-Saddam Iraq as fog of war thickens

An invitation to mayhem Potential for Turk-Kurd conflict after Saddam

[AntiGuv]

At minimum, Turkey intends to secure de facto control over the extensive oil facilities around Mosul & Kirkuk. That much has seemed patently obvious for some while. I now expect no less than half a dozen folks to sing me the praises of "Free Kurdistan"... ;)

[arete]

Looks like it is going to turn into a free-for-all to grab Iraq's oil.

Richard W.

[Arpege92]

Turkey is not a Robin Hood, it's a Robbing Hood! Don't count on little John (that's us) to help them!!!

[Hoverbug]

How about:
Turkey gets one bbl of oil for every U.S soldier that was allowed to stage in Turkey.

[gitmo]

The little Red Hen showed them what she had found. "If we plant these grains, they'll grow into wheat. Then we can grind the wheat into flour and bake a delicious loaf of bread," she said. "Who will help me plant them?"

"Not I," meowed the Cat, with a great big yawn.
"Nor I," quacked the Duck, swimming quickly away.
"Nor I," grunted the Pig, peeking out of his mud puddle.
"Nor I," squawked Turkey-Lurkey, shaking his tail feathers.
"Then I'll do it myself," said the little Red Hen.

...

They get their comeuppance at the end when the little red hen indignantly replies to their request for food:

"Not a chance!" said the little Red Hen. "I planted the grains all by myself. I cut and threshed the wheat all by myself. I carried the heavy sack to the mill and back all by myself. I baked the flour into bread ALL BY MYSELF! And that is how I'm going to eat it!"

[F.J. Mitchell]

If that oil belongs to Turkey, they should have gone after it a long time ago. This war is against terrorists and terrorist regimes-not oil rights.

Turkey is tossing a wishbone into the works. Too many of our supposed to be friends are proving themselves to be nothing but leeches and opportunists.

With friends like ours, who needs enemies?

[RightWhale]

examining treaties from the early 20th century to see whether Turkey had a claim to the oil fields of the Mosul and Kirkuk provinces

Consequences of backing the losing side in war. Greece lost the marbles. Palestine lost some turf. Turkey lost Mesopotamia. Italy lost Libya. Some tribe lost Oklahoma. Japan lost Korea. Germany lost Prussia.

Claims are everywhere. Honoring claims is rare.

[Bill Davis FR]

go turkey go...invade and capture the oilfields and become an oil producing country...

[Mr.Clark]

GW and friends have said numerous times that we expect to secure Iraq's national sovereignty, including their current borders. If the Turks come south, they're going to set the area ablaze, because the Kurds will sense an oppurtunity. That will be bad for all parties involved.