ANKARA, Feb 8 (KUNA) — A Turkish daily newspaper said Friday US Defense Secretary Robert Gates had sent a letter to his Turkish counterpart Wajdi Gonul calling on Turkey to send troops to Afghanistan to fight terrorism there.
The Turkish daily Hurriyet said Washington, which has been helping Ankara crack down on PKK Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq through supplying the Turks with intelligence reports on PKK activities there, “did not take long to ask Ankara to return the favor” and help Washington’s anti-terrorism campaign in Afghanistan.
The letter was sent by Gates at the end of January. But it was delivered to the Turkish side on February 1, the paper said.
“Turkey must play a more significant role against Taliban’s terrorist activities in Afghanistan. Therefore, Turkey should send troops to that country’s dangerous spots in the south and east to work under NATO’s leadership,” the letter said.
But Turkey had made it clear in the past that any of its troops sent to Afghanistan would only be involved in logistics activities that do not endanger their lives.