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Some 1,000 Turkish troops crossed into northern Iraq late Friday night in preparation for a larger deployment of Turkish forces to combat the armed Kurds, reports in Ankara said Saturday.
The Turkish troops crossed the Iraqi border from the southeastern town of Cukurca, where the borders of Turkey, Iraq and Iran converge, said the reports.
Earlier, the Qatar-based al-Jazeera TV channel quoted Turkish officials as saying that a group of Turkish vanguard started to cross northern Iraq.
The Turkey decided to send its troops into northern Iraq to control refugees and prevent any attempt to create a Kurdish state.
Meanwhile, a large number of Turkish troops are being stationed near the town of Silopi, 7 km away from the Iraqi border.
However, US Secretary of State Colin Powell stated at a press conference in Washington earlier Friday that there was no need for Turkey to send troops into northern Iraq.
"We have clearly said to the Turkish government that we think it's best that they do not go over into northern Iraq," Powell said.
The Turkish troop movement came on the same day when it opened its airspace to US warplanes for strikes on Iraq.
"It has been determined that it is in Turkey's interests to open Turkish air space," Turkish Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul late Friday told reporters.
The decision to open Turkish air space was adopted at an emergency meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Friday evening.
Turkish Parliament approved a motion Thursday evening on over flights of US warplanes and entrance of Turkish armed forces into northern Iraq.
(Xinhua News Agency March 22, 2003)
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