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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: cnyndwllr who wrote (182679)	3/1/2006 12:53:49 PM
From: KyrosL	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

>>"The invasion and occupation opened issues for which the Iraqi people had no answer,"he said, including the role of religion and relations among Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.< aka Pandora's box, as the Turkish PM warned three months before the invasion. Turkish PM Says Don't Open Pandora's Box in Iraq Saturday, January 04 2003 @ 08:31 AM Eastern Standard Time ANKARA, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul flew to Damascus Saturday at the start of a tour of Middle East countries to seek ways to head off a U.S.-led war in neighboring Iraq that he likened to "Pandora's box." As a close ally of the United States, NATO member Turkey is expected to offer airspace and logistical support for the United States against Iraq. But Ankara has been dragging its feet over making a firm commitment to provide military support, hoping to avoid war and the political and economic turmoil it may bring. "Iraq is like Pandora's box. We don't want Pandora's box to be opened here," Gul said in an interview with Aksam newspaper. "This box should not be opened. Iraq should not be scattered because it would not be possible to put everyone back in again."Gul said the chief responsibility for avoiding a war lay with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "Undoubtedly, a great role has to be undertaken by Iraq for a solution without war," Gul told reporters before departing for Syria. "It has to demonstrate to the whole world that it complies with U.N. Security Council decisions without hesitation and transparently." Turkey's new Justice and Development Party (AKP) government has been at pains to allay suspicions about its Islamist roots and has pledged commitment to its Western allies. At the same time the AKP's grassroots support and the majority of Muslim Turkey's population are deeply opposed to war in neighboring Iraq that Ankara fears could damage its economy and possibly lead to the break up of Iraq. Gul was due to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and other officials in Damascus Saturday. He will then travel to Egypt Sunday to meet President Hosni Mubarak and the Arab League's Secretary General Amr Moussa. Monday Gul is due to meet King Abdullah of Jordan in Amman before returning to Ankara. It was not immediately clear when a planned visit to Saudi Arabia would take place. POOLING EFFORTS On the first Middle East tour by a senior member of the new Turkish government, Gul said he would try to coordinate efforts to avoid a war in Iraq. "It would definitely have a great influence if all our efforts were working together," he said. Turkish authorities say they cannot make a decision on participating in any war against Baghdad until the end of January when U.N. arms inspectors, seeking evidence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, report to the Security Council. "All diplomatic means have to be exhausted, everything should be tried. We are at that phase at the moment," Gul said. Turkey fears a conflict in Iraq could spread unrest among its own Kurdish population in the southeast if Iraqi Kurds take advantage of the turmoil to seek their own independence. Officials say Turkey will be keenly watching what happens in the oil-rich cities of Kirkuk and Mosul which Ankara fears may come under the sway of the Iraqi Kurds. Turkey sees itself as the guarantor of a small Turkmen minority in the region and has said it will act to protect them if necessary. "If there is a law and order problem and no one to establish it then it is possible for Turkey to take measures to preserve the rights of our Turkmen ethnic brothers," Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis said Friday. Any Turkish intervention would be viewed with concern by Iraq's other neighbors Iran and Syria, which also have Kurds living in their territory. Iraqi Kurds, who have enjoyed broad autonomy from Baghdad since the 1991 Gulf War, would also be deeply suspicious. Turkey's relations with Syria have been rocky in the past but have improved since 1998 when Damascus expelled Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), who had been using Syria as a base for operations against Turkey. "Recently Turkish-Syrian relations have come to very good levels," Gul said. "We have to forget the past and look entirely ahead to the future. turks.us

To: cnyndwllr who wrote (182679)	3/1/2006 1:07:25 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 281500

Poll: Troops signal desire to come home csmonitor.com

To: cnyndwllr who wrote (182679)	3/1/2006 8:03:18 PM
From: steve dietrich	Respond to of 281500

It's the character of the Bush Admin. to cherry pick which info. they want the public to believe, so the can further their agendas. As often as not it is an outright fabrication.

To: cnyndwllr who wrote (182679)	3/6/2006 4:19:20 AM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 281500

Twilight's Last Gleaming _________________________________________________________ By John Cory* t r u t h o u t \| Perspective Sunday 05 March 2006 truthout.org Who are these people? These people who line their pockets with the lives of our loved ones? These gray men who lurk in shadows and kill the sunshine of democracy? These people who wear morality like a cheap suit pilfered from the collection plate of decency? Who are these people who have turned America into their own personal ATM machine? These are the people of the lie - Republicans. Who are these people? These people who sit in spineless silence unable to speak in defense of America? These people who mime the words of our founders, afraid to act with independence? Who utter the words "We concede," instead of "We the People?" These are the people who lie down - Democrats. Newspapers no longer serve the public, only their corporate masters. They have wedged themselves firmly between the cheeks of power, a tissue to sanitize the bullshit. The media has finally achieved the ultimate self-delusion; broadcasting sitcom politics, and talking points of the throne, it has become the court jester with tinkling bells and curly pointed shoes: useless, untrustworthy, and fused in falsehoods and facades. This is twilight's last gleaming. Attention must be paid. Democracy is dying. Bush and Company wants us to be afraid. Republicans sell us fear as they sell out America. Democrats wait in the wings, picking up their pieces of silver to keep mum. Both political parties capitalize on all the fear. Democrats think we will become so fearful of Republicans that we will have no other choice but to elect them. That is their incentive. Low profile, quiet acquiescence, and they think their silence will be rewarded. This is not the time for silence. According to recent polls from Zogby, Fox News, Gallup and CNN, 72% of our troops believe the war in Iraq is a failure and we should withdraw. 64% of the public disapproves of Bush's handling of Iraq. 69% of Americans are against the Dubai Port deal. 52% do not find Bush "honest and trustworthy." And yet Democrats can find no voice, no fight, no issue to unify them to protect "we the people." Major print and media outlets can find no reason to investigate Republican scandals, bribery and lies, no reason to question an administration that started a war with a lie and failed its own citizens when Katrina hit, by lying about what they did or did not know. Katrina, like 9/11, left the boy king wide-eyed and unprepared. Leader of the free world? Most Americans think not. When it comes time for voting, here is what I will remember: the silence. If there is a voice for America, let them speak now. Let them speak for the poor women who not only will find abortion illegal, but will not be allowed birth control and contraceptives. Let them speak for the old and infirm who will not be able to have healthcare and cost-effective drug prescriptions. Let them speak for true family values of providing for our veterans and protecting our troops with proper body armor and ending a false war so no more loved ones have to die for a lie. But most of all, let them now speak up for the one precious gift that is America - Freedom. Freedom of speech - Freedom to dissent - Freedom from illegal domestic spying. Freedom, sweet freedom for which our fathers, brothers, and sisters have fought and died for over the past 230 years! Hunter S. Thompson warned, "Big dark coming soon." Big dark is here. Our Constitution hangs by a thread. Make no mistake, this is twilight's last gleaming. It's time to defend America, not sell it down the river of corporate greed. It is time to stand up, not slink away to fight another day, because there are no more days. The monarchs of mendacity under George Bush are dismantling democracy at every opportunity. Democrats, you want my vote? Earn it! Get up off your ass and take a stand! Take back America. Stop whimpering. Throw out your Republican-lite Bush lickspittles and suit up for battle. We the people will support you if you speak up for the America we live in and want to preserve. You cannot claim victory simply because you kept the GOP from burying the Constitution while you let them drive it underground. This is twilight's last gleaming. Who will speak up for America? * John Cory is a Vietnam veteran. He received the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with V device, 1969 - 1970. john-cory.com