Turkish party leader criticizes new Afghanistan mission

By Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA (AA) - A Turkish opposition leader on Wednesday criticized Ankara's attempt to keep troops in Afghanistan for maintaining the security of the Kabul airport after imminent NATO withdrawal from the war-torn country.

"I call on [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan to pull himself together. We have historical ties with Afghanistan. Turkish soldiers [in Afghanistan] have never served in combat missions. On the other hand, they won the hearts of the brotherly Afghan people by helping them," Meral Aksener told her Good (IYI) Party's parliamentary group.

Aksener said there was no reason "to take such a risk."

"Mr. Erdogan, let those who brought Afghanistan to this mess tidy it up.

"You couldn't say what you needed to say to your friend [US President Joe] Biden, what you shouldn't say [to him], you said with great fervor," she added.

As president, your primary duty is not to provide airport security in Afghanistan, but to ensure the peace and prosperity of your own nation, she said.

The situation in Afghanistan has gained importance in recent weeks after Biden announced that all American forces would withdraw from the war-torn country by Sept. 11, with NATO allies to follow suit.

Biden and Erdogan discussed the issue at a recent NATO leaders summit in Brussels.

Ankara has been running the military and logistic operations of the Kabul airport for six years as part of the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission.

Turkey, whose forces in Afghanistan have always comprised noncombatant troops, is reported to have offered to guard the airport as questions remain on how security will be assured along major transport routes and at the airport, which is the main gateway to the capital Kabul.