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Turkey Warns U.S. of Lengthy Iraq War
Sunday, July 21, 2002
By Suzan Fraser
Associated Press Writer

"President Bush is a friend of Turkey. We do not want to hurt his feelings, but it is our duty to let them know our concerns," he said. Turkish backing is seen as crucial to any action against Iraq. The country was a launching pad for U.S. strikes against Iraq during the Gulf War and still hosts some 50 U.S. warplanes enforcing a no-fly zone over northern Iraq.

ANKARA, Turkey -- AP
Turkey's embattled prime minister on Sunday warned the United States risked becoming bogged down in a long war if it moves ahead with plans to topple Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

"Iraq is ... so developed technologically and economically despite the embargo, that it cannot be compared to Afghanistan or Vietnam," Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said in an interview on state-run television.

"It will not be possible for the (United States) to get out of there easily," Ecevit said after a recent visit to the crucial NATO-member country on Iraq's northern border by Deputy Defense Minister Paul Wolfowitz. The Pentagon No. 2 was in Turkey to lobby for it's assistance in any U.S. move against Saddam.

Ecevit said he did not know when the action might occur or what shape it might take. President Bush has said U.S. policy demand's the Iraqi leader's ouster.
(More: Common Dreams NewsCenter News Source)
2002 © The Associated Press.

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