Visits To Ankara Disturb Tehran

Visits to Ankara Disturb Tehran

http://www.zaman.com/?bl=international&alt=&hn=27965

By Anadolu News Agency (aa), Cihan News Agency, Tehran
Published: Monday, December 26, 2005

The Iranian government feels uneasy about the visit by top-level American and Israeli authorities to Turkey in recent days.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hamid Reza Asafi told that they had been in contact with Ankara regarding this issue, "We asked our Turkish friends to be careful."

Asafi claimed the attacks the US plan to organize against Iran were discussed during the visits. "We are sure Turkey is aware that the Zionist regime wants to profit from it."

The allegations were in the direction of visits by the US Federal Bureau of investigation Director, Robert Mueller, and the Central Intelligence Agency Director, Porter Goss, in December to Turkey as support to the US planned attack in Iran next year aimed at striking against the terrorist organization, the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) camps located in the country. However, Turkish authorities have denied the allegations.

At a news conference held yesterday (Sunday) in Tehran, Asafi told in relation to the issue of these planned attacks, "Israel's intention is well-known: To create a crisis in the region and division among countries."
Following the visits by the CIA and FBI directors, Israeli Chief of General Staff Dan Halutz also came to Turkey.

The German news agency, DDP, claimed Turkish Land Forces Commander General Yasar Buyukanit, who went to the US, was asked to prepare the Turkish Armed Forces for the possible attacks. Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, however, announced the visits had nothing to do with Iran.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Asafi, in his statement, also said Moscow made no proposal suggesting Tehran continue its uranium enrichment activities in Russia and added they will not approve such a proposal.

Meanwhile, the pro-Israel lobby group, AIPAC, termed the Iran policies of the Bush administration that they have supported for years as "dangerous and disturbing" and defended that these policies actually help Tehran acquire its nuclear weapons.