The unofficial (“non-paper”) reply of U.S. to the questionnaire sent by the General Staff will be analyzed in the meeting. The military side will also voice the risks in case of serving in Iraq and the measures to be taken.

Command of Turkey

The fact that there are positive statements regarding Turkey’s commandership of her own forces in Iraq in the reply sent by U.S. is important. Macedon and Azeri troops can also be under the command of Turkey.

10 Thousand Troops

Regarding the number of troops to be sent, there is a consensus between U.S. and Turkey that it should be 10 thousand.

West of Baghdad

The issue of section to be served in is not clarified yet. Despite this uncertainty, Ankara stresses the west and north of Baghdad, where the Sunnites constitute the majority, as the possible locations. Turkey does not approach the east of Baghdad warmly, since it is a Shiite region close to Iran.