Brown, Erdogan sign joint strategic partnership agreement

PanARMENIAN.Net - Britain Tuesday pledged its full support for Turkey in efforts to "root out" terrorism by Kurdish PKK rebels as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Iraq that a mandate for a possible Turkish incursion into northern Iraq could be "exercised at any time."



Erdogan, speaking after talks in London with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, stressed that any Turkish military action would be "targeted only" at rebels of the Kurdish separatist group PKK.



The Turkish Prime Minister said his country "respected" Iraqi territory and had "always supported the Iraqi people."



Asked at what point Turkish "patience" in seeking a solution to the problem of PKK operations out of northern Iraq would run out, Erdogan said: "We cannot wait forever, so we have to make decisions, our own decisions."



He stressed that the Turkish parliament had authorized possible military action into northern Iraq and added: "The Iraqi government must know we can exercise this mandate we have received from the Turkish parliament at any time."



Brown said Britain "unequivocally condemned" what the PKK had done, and made clear that the Iraqi government had a role to play in curbing PKK violence in the northern border region.



"As far as Iraq is concerned we will step up all the efforts that are necessary so that terrorists cannot move from Iraq over the mountains," Brown said.



"We believe the actions we are prepared to take internationally give some support to the Turkish government in these difficult circumstances," added Brown.



Britain had declared the PKK a banned organization and would ensure that the activities of all affiliated groups would also be proscribed.



PKK fighters were Monday reported to have taken eight Turkish soldiers hostage following clashes with Turkish troops Sunday.



Brown and Erdogan announced that they had signed a joint strategic partnership agreement, while Brown also pledged to continue to support Turkey's accession to the European Union, Digital Journal reports.