Turkey Hints Could Be Ready to Assist U.S.

Erdogan immediately went into a fresh meeting with close aides and senior ministers.
Public and parliamentary opposition to war is high and Erdogan has appeared unwilling to risk a second rebellion by resubmitting a resolution parliament has already rejected once.

REJECTED ONCE
Two weeks ago, parliament unexpectedly rejected a government proposal to allow 62,000 troops to deploy here for an attack.
Turkish leaders have kept open the possibility of resubmitting the proposal for a second vote, as U.S. Navy ships waited off the southern coast.
But officials of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) say a new motion, if presented at all, may not come until next Monday, after parliament approves a new government program.
Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul repeated that a vote on a second resolution was unlikely until the vote on the government program but said Monday’s top-level meeting might produce a "solution for the United States."
The prospect war could start without Turkish involvement caused alarm on Turkish financial markets which fear Ankara will now forfeit a linked U.S. financial package of up to $30 billion designed to ease the financial impact of a war.
The lira fell to an all-time low of over 1,710,000 to the dollar and stocks slumped in a foretaste of problems to come.
The head of Turkey’s influential armed forces, General Hilmi Ozkok, present at Monday’s meeting, has already made clear that he believes Turkey will be better off in any war than out of it.
Active assistance for the United States would enable Turkey to have a say in the future of Iraq and help it to minimize the economic damage of a war, he has said.

MOMENT OF TRUTH
On Monday, President Bush said that Monday would be "a moment of truth" in the stand-off with Iraq over its alleged arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, signaling efforts at finding a diplomatic solution were nearing an end.
A huge main invasion force stands ready in the Gulf region.
The first motion was rejected for several reasons. Many deputies in the ruling AKP were reluctant to back a war against a neighboring Muslim country. Some looked to comments by the president that the motion was unconstitutional in the absence of a second United Nations resolution authorizing force.
Amid this, anti-American undercurrents have developed as newspapers suggested that the U.S. was "bullying" Turkey.
But for Turkey, the consequence of not supporting Washington could be bitter.
Rising interest rates could hamper turnover of heavy debt, high oil prices may undermine a tenuous economic recovery. An existing $16 billion IMF-backed crisis package could quickly meet difficulties.