Ankara, December 03: Turkey has said it is reviewing whether to increase its commitment to NATO's mission in Afghanistan but has ruled out participating in combat operations.
Turkey, NATO's sole Muslim member, has been steadfast in its support for the US-led campaign in Afghanistan but it fears that participating in combat could alienate Muslims there and in the broader Muslim world.
"Our position is very clear, we have strong reservations about combat operations," Turkey's Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul said today. "Our soldiers are not a part of Operation Enduring Freedom and will not be."
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will travel to Washington for a meeting Monday with President Barack Obama, who is seeking additional troops for Afghanistan.
Turkey's participation in the Afghan mission carries enormous symbolic importance because it is the only Muslim country in the force working with US troops to beat back resurgent Taliban deny al Qaeda a safe haven carries enormous symbolic importance because it is the only Muslim.
Turkey took over the rotating command of the NATO peacekeeping operation in Kabul last month and doubled the number of its troops there to around 1,750, the state-run Anatolia news agency said today. None of the Turkish soldiers are assigned to combat missions.
--PTI
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