This morning, Turkey sent 10,000 troops into Iraq, ostensibly to battle PKK militants in the area. Apparently, everyone knew about the invasion, with Prime Minister Maliki trying to talk Turkey out of the mission and George Bush being kept in the loop.
Destabilizing the only peaceful region in Iraq is mind-numbingly stupid, and
statements from Turkey reek of doublespeak:
"We will withdraw our troops once the mission is complete and within the shortest possible time," [Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdogan said, adding that he informed U.S. President George W. Bush about the incursion last night. "We respect the territorial integrity of Iraq."
It's pretty hard to respect the territorial integrity of Iraq when you're, you know, invading it.
Our military practically condoned the operation:US military spokesman Rear Admiral Gregory Smith said the operation was understood to be of "limited duration" and specifically targeted at Kurdish PKK fighters in the largely autonomous region of Kurdistan.
"Turkey has given its assurances that it will do everything possible to avoid collateral damage to innocent citizens or Kurdish infrastructure," he said.
So as long as Turkey doesn't accidentally kill civilians, everyone's ok with this situation.
I'm sure others will have more as this story develops, but for now, your thoughts?
</img>
</img>
</img>
(Source Link)