Turkey and U.S. come to an agreement

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell held contacts with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara. The sides came to an agreement about the delivery of humanitarian aid, fuel and food through the Turkish soil and search-rescue activities in Northern Iraq. Gul said that there was no necessity for a new Draft Permit on these issues.In a joint press conference held at the Foreign Ministry, Gul said that the visit of Powell was very timely because it showed that the relations between Turkey and U.S. were very firm and rooted. Gul stressed that Turkey was in close collaboration with U.S. within the framework of the Turkish Constitution, saying that over-flights through Turkish air zone were permitted with the decision of Parliament and this collaboration would continue in the future. He said that further cooperation opportunities in humanitarian assistance and re-structuring of Iraq after the war have been discussed during the contacts. Powell stressed that Turkey was a very important part of the coalition, saying that Turkey and U.S. came to an agreement on the delivery of food, fuel and humanitarian aid to Northern Iraq. Powell said that there was no necessity for Turkey to enter Northern Iraq because U.S. followed the developments in the region closely and had control over the situation. He said that they decided to found a coordination board to solve the problems related with the issue.Powell said that the financial assistance of 1 billion dollars would prevent worries about a shock in the Turkish economic system, which might occur because of the war conditions. On the Cyprus issue, Powell said that they wanted to see further progress in the solution process.Papandreou: If You Enter Iraq, NATO Support Shall EndGreek Foreign Minister Yorgo Papandreou said that if Turkey entered Northern Iraq, NATO would withdraw its defense support to Turkey. Papandreou said that in case of such an intervention of Turkey, there would be a very big crack in the Turco-U.S. relations and the EU process would also be endangered.President Ahmet Necdet Sezer received  U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell had a one-hour meeting with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul. The meeting lasted for an hour, longer than expected.  Ten people were detained in Ankara while protesting the visit of Powell and U.S.Â