06oct03

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Turkish govt wants troop dispatch to Iraq.

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The Turkish government has made a formal decision to send troops to Iraq and will ask parliament to approve the move, Justice Minister Cemil Cicek said Monday following a cabinet meeting.

Cicek said that all minister had signed a motion asking parliament to authorize the dispatch of soldiers to the war-torn country.

"We will probably send the motion to parliament this evening... The issue will be probably debated in parliament tomorrow," he said.

The minister, who is also government spokesman, explained that the motion did not specify how many soldiers the government was planning to send and to which region of its increasingly turbulent neighbor.

He said that once the motion is adopted by parliament, the government would have a free hand in negotiating outstanding questions with the United States.

[Source: Agence France-Presse, Ankara, Tur, 6Oct03]

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