New York Times: Turkey's parliament wants legitimacy to position Iraq

"It would be wrong for the government to send a request to parliament when the conditions for international legitimacy have not been met,'' Turkey's parliament speaker Bulent Arinc was quoted as telling reporters by the state-run Anatolian news agency, the New York Times reported today.

"For this request to come to parliament, it must carry international legitimacy,'' Arinc said. "Inspections under U.N. resolution 1441 continue...We know the U.N. Security Council has not met to make a decision.''

The US is trying to force Turkey, through political and economic pressure to accept US troops into the country, where reports indicate some 95 percent of Turkey's citizens oppose war on Iraq. The US efforts are seen by some as very damaging and undermining to Turkey's nascent democratic elections, and driving a wedge between citizens and their elected representatives.