Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
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Revue <strong>de</strong> Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro<br />
<strong>de</strong> la Prensa-Baszn Oz<strong>et</strong>i<br />
Talabani: Military operations on<br />
Iraq bor<strong>de</strong>r rnust stop<br />
Iraql Presi<strong>de</strong>nt Jalal Talabanl and Kurdlsh Presi<strong>de</strong>nt Massoud Barzanilisten on as reporters put questions ln a press conference ln<br />
~~~~~~~~_~~!!~~!_~~~~I!<br />
~~~Y_IS~~O_~~._~~~~~_~~OTO~~za~_~~s~~r_i __ __ ___ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ _<br />
Globe Correpon<strong>de</strong>nt<br />
Iraq's Presi<strong>de</strong>nt Jalal<br />
Talabani asked Turkey<br />
and Iran to stop their military<br />
operations on the<br />
bor<strong>de</strong>r strip b<strong>et</strong>ween the<br />
three countries and con<strong>de</strong>mned<br />
the cross bor<strong>de</strong>r<br />
operations.<br />
Talabani stated that his<br />
govemment has protested<br />
to the operations by Iran<br />
and Turkey and has conveyed<br />
its worries officially<br />
to Turkish and Iranian ambassadors<br />
in Iraq.<br />
"ln the name of Iraqi<br />
govemment, 1 announce<br />
that we are not committed<br />
to any previous agreements<br />
b<strong>et</strong>ween Saddam Hussein's<br />
govemment and Turkish<br />
govemments on bor<strong>de</strong>r issue.<br />
That agreement is annulled<br />
for us," said Talabani<br />
in a join!_p~ess conference<br />
along Kurdistan PresI<strong>de</strong>nt<br />
Massoud Barzani, held in<br />
Salahaddin last Thursday.<br />
According to a previous<br />
security-cooperation agreement<br />
b<strong>et</strong>ween Iraq and its<br />
northem neighbor, Ankara's<br />
troops were allowed<br />
to cross Iraq's bor<strong>de</strong>rs in<br />
pursue of rebel Kurdish<br />
fighters.<br />
Prior to the US-Ied war<br />
on Iraq in 2003, Turkish<br />
troops had crossed Iraq's<br />
northem bor<strong>de</strong>rs on several<br />
occasions, ~s part of<br />
military operations to hunt<br />
down Kurdistan Workers'<br />
Party (PKK) guerillas.<br />
Talabani further hailed<br />
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri<br />
al-Maliki's <strong>de</strong>cision to<br />
activate the committee<br />
in ~harge of eliminating<br />
the Impacts of the <strong>et</strong>hniccleansing<br />
program of Arabization,<br />
run by the former<br />
regime of Saddam Hussein.<br />
ln his recent visit to<br />
Kurdistan Region, PM al-<br />
Maliki pledged to appropriate<br />
a $200 million fund<br />
for the committee, expected<br />
to normalize Kirkuk's<br />
situations by the end of<br />
2007. He also promised<br />
to release an already $ 80<br />
million blocked-fund, appropriated<br />
for reconstructing<br />
Kirkuk during the rule<br />
of the former Shiite PM<br />
Ibrahim al-Jafari.<br />
So far Iraq's three postwar<br />
govemments have<br />
taken no consi<strong>de</strong>rable steps<br />
in implementing a constitutional<br />
article s<strong>et</strong>ting a<br />
roadmap to resolve Kirkuk<br />
issue. This has worried<br />
Kurds who consi<strong>de</strong>r Kirkuk<br />
as a real touchstone for the<br />
sincerity of Iraqi govemments<br />
in realizing Kurdish<br />
rights and status in Iraq.<br />
On the issue of Baghdad-Kurdistan<br />
relations,<br />
Presi<strong>de</strong>nt Barzani said that<br />
Kurdistan and Iraqi govemments<br />
will open representation<br />
offices in Baghdad<br />
and Arbil respectively. For<br />
this a high-ranking Kurdish<br />
<strong>de</strong>legation will visit<br />
Baghdad in a near future<br />
he ad<strong>de</strong>d.<br />
'<br />
Iraq's security situation<br />
was one of the issues discussed<br />
b<strong>et</strong>ween Barzani<br />
and Talabani. Kurdistan enjoys<br />
consi<strong>de</strong>rable stability<br />
and calmness smce the end<br />
of the war, <strong>de</strong>spite increasing<br />
violence in other areas<br />
of the country. Barzani rejected<br />
some reports that<br />
PM al-Maliki had asked<br />
for Kurdish govemment's<br />
cooperation on security<br />
issues, but said "however,<br />
we will do aIl what we can<br />
to help secure any part of<br />
Iraq. But, 1 don't think we<br />
need to send Peshmarga<br />
(Kurdish fighters) to areas<br />
outsi<strong>de</strong> Kurdistan Region."<br />
July 18,2006 - No.66<br />
Mohammed<br />
A. Salih,<br />
27