NATO’s Rasmussen, Erdo?an discuss Libya truce prospects

EM?NE KART
ANKARA

NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen (L) had talks with Turkish PM Erdo?an in Ankara on Monday.
NATO’s chief held talks with Turkish leaders on Monday in Ankara to discuss the prospect of cease-fire in the northern African country of Libya in line with a UN Security Council resolution calling for “the immediate establishment of a cease-fire,” and aimed at protecting civilians in the country, officials said.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s first stop in Ankara was Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdo?an’s office. Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davuto?lu also participated in the meeting between Rasmussen and Erdo?an who took a break during the weekly Cabinet meeting in order to meet with Rasmussen.
“In addition to discussing ways of maintaining the cease-fire in Libya, Erdo?an and Rasmussen exchanged views on the need to show respect for the will of the Libyan people,” sources from the prime minister’s office told Today’s Zaman.
Rasmussen, meanwhile, informed Erdo?an of “NATO’s new command system,” the sources said, without elaborating further.
Rasmussen’s visit came at a time when the Turkish capital was preparing to host later in the day an envoy from Muammar Gaddafi’s government who has sought Turkey’s help for a possible cease-fire with opposition forces.

There is no meeting scheduled between Libyan Deputy Foreign Minister Abdelati Obeidi and Prime Ministry officials, the sources told Today’s Zaman, underlining that contacts with Obeidi have been coordinated and assumed by the Foreign Ministry.

Following the meeting with Erdo?an, Rasmussen held separate talks with Davuto?lu at the ministry residence. There was no official statement issued following talks at the prime minister’s office. Davuto?lu, in a statement after meeting Rasmussen, said the Turkish side underlined  importance of “territorial integrity of Libya, providing life security for Libyans, giving an end to killing of civilians and providing an eventual normalization at once.”

Rasmussen’s visit to the Turkish capital comes days after NATO assumed command of all air operations over Libya last Thursday, taking over the role from the United States.

NATO is among those saying a new UN resolution would be required to arm rebels, though Britain and the US disagree. Several world leaders, including Prime Minister Erdo?an, oppose arming rebels.

At a joint news conference with British Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday in London, Erdo?an said Turkey’s view was “negative” on the issue of arming fighters seeking Gaddafi’s ouster. “This could also create an environment which could be conducive to terrorism, and that would be dangerous,” he said. “It should be NATO which should protect civilians from cruelty,” Erdo?an said, dismissing any rift with Cameron on the issue.

In addition to Libya, the situation in Afghanistan also occupied much of the agenda, since in the war-torn country, where Turkey has troops, three UN staff and four security guards in Mazar-i-Sharif were killed on Friday in an attack on a UN mission by protesters enraged by the burning of a Quran in Florida.

Turkey on Sunday condemned the attack strongly, calling the burning of the Quran an “irresponsible and provocative act” and saying it was clear that such actions make the jobs of international personnel working in Afghanistan more difficult.

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