Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he told his Turkish counterpart on Thursday that Turkey should end its offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq as soon as possible, but that the U.S. is making no threats against its NATO ally if it fails to comply.“The United States believes the current offensive should be as short and precisely targeted as possible,” Gates said after a meeting with Turkish Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul.
Gates said that a specific timetable for the Turks to stop their attack “did not come up during my meeting with the defense minister,” but he said before flying to Turkey that withdrawal should come in a matter of days, or weeks, rather than months.
“The key is for us to make clear what our interests are, our concerns about the situation in Iraq,” Gates said at a news conference with Gonul. “What is important is to serve both the interests of the United States and Turkey because I think we have shared interests.
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