TURKEY: U.S. DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY, PAUL WOLFOWITZ HAS SAID IRAQI PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN IS "SURROUNDED BY INTERANTIONAL COMMUNITY"

Record ID: 645642

  • Title: TURKEY: U.S. DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY, PAUL WOLFOWITZ HAS SAID IRAQI PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN IS "SURROUNDED BY INTERANTIONAL COMMUNITY"
  • Date: 4th December 2002
  • Summary: (W4) ANKARA, TURKEY (DECEMBER 4, 2002) (REUTERS) SLV OF U.S. DEPUTY DEFENCE SECRETARY PAUL WOLFOWITZ NEWS CONFERENCE AT AIRPORT MCU (English) U.S. DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY, PAUL WOLFOWITZ SAYING: "We reached agreement on the next steps of military planning and preparations. And I believe we've chartered a course to the way forward, working together. So now it should be clearer than ever that Saddam Hussein, is surrounded by international community. And finally, this is vitally important, because the most likely route to achieve a peacefully resolution, a peaceful disarmament of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction is through confronting Saddam Hussein with unified international community, as the most likely route to achieving a peaceful disarmament of Iraqi weapons of terror."
  • Embargoed: 19th December 2002 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: ANKARA AND ADANA, TURKEY
  • Country: Turkey
  • Reuters ID: LVACQWMSQI0X3QVDTXGIW0SQOQL4
  • Story Text: U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz has Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, "is surrounded by international community." His comments followed confirmation by Turkey on Tuesday that it would open up its bases to the U.S. for military operations against Iraq if necessary.
    U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz told reporters at Esenboga Airport before leaving Ankara on Wednesday (December 4), "We reached agreement on the next steps of military planning and preparations. And I believe we've chartered a course to the way forward, working together."
    "So now it should be clearer than ever that Saddam Hussein, is surrounded by international community," Wolfowitz added.
    Wolfowitz said Washington wanted a peaceful outcome to the crisis over Iraq and that the only way to achieve that was to convince Iraqi President Saddam Hussein that the threat of force was genuine.
    He said: ".... the most likely route to achieve a peacefully resolution, a peaceful disarmament of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction is through confronting Saddam Hussein with unified international community, as the most likely route to achieving a peaceful disarmament of Iraqi weapons of terror."
    Muslim Turkey wants to avoid war in neighbouring Iraq, fearing it will spread turmoil in the region and damage its crisis-hit economy. But the government has been at pains to shake off suspicions about its Islamist roots and show its commitment to its U.S. ally.
    Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis said on Tuesday (December 3) that Turkey would open up its bases to the U.S. for military operations if necessary, though it wanted a second U.N.
    resolution to authorise the use of force against Iraq. He did not clearly say that a second resolution was a condition of Turkish support.
    Asked if cooperation would include U.S. planes launching combat strikes from Turkey, Yakis said: "Yes... If you're talking about air bases, yes, those will be opened."
    The United States already uses Turkey's Incirlik airbase in the south to patrol a "no-fly" zone over northern Iraq set up after the end of the 1991 Gulf War.
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