ANKARA, Turkey — NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen arrived in Ankara on Thursday (October 7th) saying that the Alliance should boost its contingent in Afghanistan in order to train the local army. “I have urged the rest of the Allies, I will also urge Turkey. The Afghans should assume higher responsibility for their country. More troops are necessary to train the Afghani army,” Rasmussen said. Ankara has refused to send more troops to Afghanistan — on top of the 1,800 soldiers already there — if they are assigned to military operations.
Another issue topping the agenda is Cyprus. “We are ready to work with him to find a solution that would take into consideration Turkey’s attitude in principle and allay our concerns,” Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said before meeting with Rasmussen. The visit is part of a tour he is making ahead of NATO’s November summit in Lisbon. (Turkish NY, DPA, Hurriyet – 08/10/10)
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