World

Iran Takes On Turkey-Syria Row

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

October 5, 1998 / 1:27 PM EDT / CBS

Two day after Turkey's parliament issued an ultimatum to Syria demanding that it expel Turkish Kurdish rebels from its territory or "face the consequences," Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi arrived in Ankara on the second leg of a diplomatic mission aimed at heading off a clash in Damascus on Thursday.

On Thursday, Kharrazi stopped in Damascus for talks with Syrian President Hafez Assad.

He said he was on a mediation mission between Syria and Turkey to prevent "another war in the Middle East."

The tone in Ankara was sobrer Friday, as Turkish newspapers questioned the possibility that tensions with Syria could be resolved through diplomacy.

"Nobody should get carried away with fantasies," said Ali Sirmen, a columnist at the mass-circulation daily Milliyet.

Earlier this week, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Martin Indyk urged Syria to "take seriously" Ankara's concerns. He also called on Turkey to show restraint.

Meanwhile, Syrian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Mustafa Tlas was quoted on Thursday as saying the recent Turkish threats to Syria were "aggressive and provocative" and again pointed an accusing finger at Israel.

"The defense minister spoke about the Israeli-Turkish alliance and pointed to its dangers and aggressive objectives against the Arab nation and its national interests," an official said of a speech by Tlas at a graduation ceremony at the military academy on Wednesday.

"The new regional security axis reflects the aggressive and provocative nature against Syria. This was revealed through the recent statements by Turkish officials which contained direct and clear threats to syria," Tlas said.

On Tuesday, Turkey issued a "last warning" to Syria over what it calls Damascus' backing of Kurdish separatist rebels and canceled all leave for troops guarding the two countries' frontier.

The warning came shortly before Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak arrived in Ankara to try his hand at tackling the dispute.

"We are warning Syria for the last time," Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz told a meeting of his party deputies.

"We want them to stop their support for separatist terrorism and stop their policies of hostility. We are waiting for a reply from Syria," he said.

Yilmaz did not suggest what action Ankara might take if it received no satisfactory reply from Damascus.

Turkey accuses Syria of giving logistical support to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been fighting a campaign for Kurdish self-rule in southeast Turkey for the last 14 years. Some 29,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

Turkey has also asserted it has evidence that PKK chief Abdullah Ocalan is living in Damascus under Syrian protection. Syrai denies the charges.

Damascus, which has had territorial claims against Turkey since the 1930s, denies any link with the PKK.

Turkey beieves it is close to defeating PKK rebels on the battlefield, making frequent forays into northern Iraq to attack rebel strongholds there.

Turkish security officials said thousands of soldiers and police on the 550-mile frontier had been ordered on Monday not to take leave.

Syria has called for Arab support on a level with that seen in the 1973 Middle East war when Arabs united behind Syria and Egypt against Israel.

"We affirm that the current challenges require the Arab nation to achieve real and effective solidarity like the one which we witnessed in October 1973," the official al-Thawra daily said.

The Arab League has echoed Syrian and Iranian charges that Turkey's new informal ally Israel had fomented the row.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his country, which signed a limited defense agreement with Turkey in 1996, has no part in the quarrel.

Israeli jets are allowed to train in Turkey's airspace and Israel is upgrading Turkish fighter planes under a 1996 accord. The two nations' navies have also held joint search and rescue maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea.

Israel and Turkey both stress that their relationship is not aimed at any third party.