Aljazeera.net 3/22/03 reported that Turkish forces crossed the Turkish-Iraqi border into Iraq, in what seems to be an agreement with the US over the US use of the Turkish airspace.
ANKARA, 22 March 2003—Turkey delayed opening airspace to US aircraft as war unfolded in neighboring Iraq yesterday, demanding close control of overflights and greater freedom to dispatch its own troops over the border, sources said.
Parliament held a long-awaited vote on Thursday, the day war broke out, granting permission for US warplanes to cross Turkish territory for operations in northern Iraq. But missions Washington hoped could go ahead immediately, easing pressure on a main invasion force pressing up from the south, became bogged down in all-night talks over terms.
We’ve taken a break in talks with the US because there are
snags both concerning airspace use and movement of Turkish troops into
northern Iraq,
a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said.
Washington opposes any unilateral dispatch of Turkish troops to
northern Iraq, fearing a war within a war
—clashes between
Turkish troops and local Kurds and disruption of the US war
campaign. Ankara sees the region as of vital strategic importance and
seeks freer action beyond coalition command.
Three weeks ago Turkish deputies rejected a motion that would have allowed 62,000 US troops to be deployed in Turkey for land operations. As a result, Turkey forfeited a multi-billion dollar US aid package to guard a frail economy against the impact of war.
Thursday’s vote appeared to have finally sealed some form of cooperation with the United States, however limited.
Diplomatic sources said Turkey was demanding detailed information of every overflight, its timing and nature of the aircraft and its load. The US considered the degree of detail went beyond the demands of safety. Ankara was expecting a reply from Washington yesterday on its requests.
There were still disagreements between the Turkish and US sides about the terms under which Turkish troops would cross their southern frontier with Iraq. Thursday’s parliamentary vote also provided for deployment of Turkish forces in northern Iraq, a move strongly opposed by Iraqi Kurds.
Turkish troops have been present in northern Iraq in smaller numbers since the 1990s, operating against rebel Turkish Kurds who have retreated to the mountains there from southeastern Turkey. The troops have coexisted uneasily with Iraqi Kurdish groups who have governed the area since the 1991 Gulf War.
Eyewitnesses said at least 50 Turkish military vehicles, including at least two tanks, were waiting just on the Turkish side of the border, ready to enter Iraq.
Turkey fears Iraqi Kurds may use the chaos of war to proclaim a state that could re-ignite separatism on Turkish soil.
Kurds, for their part, fear tens of thousands of Turkish troops,
dispatched with the declared mandate of marshalling refugees, could
yet move to smother the autonomy they enjoy. If Turkish soldiers
try to enter Iraq, all the people will stand against them but if they
come as part of a global alliance that is something else,
Akher
Jamal, mayor of the northern Iraqi town of Zakho said.
Turkey will be watching with particular concern reports of military action involving Kurdish Peshmerga fighters around the northern Kirkuk oil fields. Ankara sees any Kurdish push to seize or secure rights in the Kirkuk and Mosul fields as a key step to create the financial foundations of a state.
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