Italian minister warns a Kurdish invasion would be a "disaster"

Istanbul, (AKI) -

Italian foreign minister Massimo D'Alema has warned Turkey against kind of military occupation of the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq. Such an occupation would be a "disaster" D'Alema said during a two-day visit to Turkey.

"Focused, limited military action by Turkey would be considered acceptable, especially with an agreement by Iraqi authorities," D'Alema said during an interview aired on the Turkish TV channel, Canal D, on Wednesday.

"But an occupation of northern Iraq would be unacceptable, a disaster for Turkey as well."

D'Alema was referring to the possibility of a military attack by Turkish forces on bases of separatists from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), in the mountains on the border of Turkey and Iraq.

His comments came as two US generals assured Turkey on Wednesday that the PKK would be eliminated by May next year.

During the interview, D'Alema said authorities in Ankara should recall the Israeli-Lebanese experience of July 2006, when Israeli troops invaded Lebanon to respond to attacks from Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah guerrillas. The crisis the July war unleashed in both countries was still unresolved, D'Alema noted.

D'Alema said the solution to the intensified attacks by the PKK "cannot only be military, but should also be political".

Referring to moves to close the Democratic Society Party (DTP) which has 21 members in parliament and is accused of being too close to the PKK, he said such a move would send " a very dangerous message".

The DTP is a pro-Kurdish nationalist political party in Turkey, considered by many as the political wing of the PKK.

Turkish media reported two top generals of the US army have assured Turkey that the PKK will be wiped out in 2008.

Sources told the Turkish daily Today's Zaman that Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the US Joint chiefs of staff, and Gen. David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, gave their word that cooperation between Turkey and the US would flush out terrorists by May, 2008.

In a meeting with Turkish deputy chief of general staff Gen. Ergin Saygun and general staff chief of operations Gen. Nusret Tasdelen in the capital, Ankara, Cartwright and Petraeus evaluated the success of the real-time intelligence flow provided to Turkey by the US.

The two countries had agreed to share intelligence on the PKK after US President George W. Bush and prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in Washington earlier this month.

The two US generals expressed their opinion that cooperation between the two countries against terrorism would yield positive results soon.