"Turkey, a member of NATO, said it would send a 90-man unit to northern Afghanistan to combat terrorists, train anti-Taliban fighters and support humanitarian aid operations.
Turkey's contribution is the latest sign that allied forces are preparing for a sustained campaign of surprise raids by small, elite units. Britain, Australia and Canada are sending special forces to fight alongside U.S. troops, and France is considering a similar contribution.
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said the government decided to send troops after becoming convinced that the hard-line Taliban must be unseated. The Taliban are sheltering bin Laden, the main suspect in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States.
``The Taliban regime and its archaic practices pose a threat primarily to Central Asia, and to the world,'' Ecevit said at a news conference.
The Turkish force would also take on reconnaissance missions as well as protect and evacuate civilians, Ecevit's office said. Private CNN-Turk television, citing unidentified sources, said an advance group of 15 soldiers will travel through Uzbekistan over the weekend to make the first contact with local forces and U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
Turkey's special forces are experienced in guerrilla warfare after fighting Kurdish rebels for more than 15 years in mountainous southeast Turkey."
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