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ANKARA, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Friday reaffirmed Turkey's right to send troops into Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels there and chided U.S. officials for questioning it.

"The Turkish Republic will do whatever is necessary to combat the terrorists when the time comes, but it will not announce its plans in advance," Erdogan told a news conference after a meeting of his ruling AK Party.

"We say we are ready to take concrete steps with the Iraqi government and we also say these steps must be taken now."

In sharp language underscoring Turkish anxiety about the chaos in Iraq, Erdogan said it was wrong for Washington -- "our supposed strategic ally" -- to tell Turkey, with its historic and cultural ties in the region, to stay out of Iraq.

"We have a 350 km border with Iraq. We have historic relations ... the United States is 10,000 km away from Iraq, and yet is it not intervening in Iraq's internal affairs?" he said.

Turkish media say Erdogan has been irked by comments attributed to Washington's envoy to Baghdad, Zalmay Khalilzad, warning third countries not to interfere in Iraqi affairs.....

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The Trukish response is another reminder of Dubya's lame duck inability to control events. I watched the idiot try to spin his way out of his latest goof while the stooges lined up behind him were looking everywhere but at the cameras. Even Cheney looked like he wished the ground would open up and swallow him.

There is much speculation that if Iraq is invaded by either the Iranians or the Turks that Saudi Arabia will come to the assistance of their Sunni bretheren.

If the Turks feel encouraged by a feeble response from Dubya regarding their proposed adventurism, they will act.

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Saudi Arabia believes the Iraqi government is not up to the challenge and has told the United States that it is prepared to move its own forces into Iraq should the violence there degenerate into chaos, a senior U.S. official told NBC News on Tuesday.

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Originally posted by jester:
Hey! Where is everyone? Did Rona get her hair done ?

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