The United States has declared its support for the
elimination of the Kurdish Workers Party, deemed by the State Department as
a terrorist group.
The Bush administration said the United States does not support
arranging political asylum for PKK members now based in northern Iraq. The
administration was responding to reports that Washington sought to find
refuge for up to 5,000 PKK insurgents in Norway. The PKK is also known as
Kadek.
Turkish officials said
Ankara and Washington agreed on the elimination of the Kurdish insurgency
group in exchange for Turkish troop deployment in Iraq, Middle East Newsline reported.
"The PKK and Kadek is a terrorist organization under U.S. law," State
Department spokesman Richard Boucher said on Thursday. "The United States is
in coordination with Turkey and we're committed to eliminating the threat
that's posed by the PKK-Kadek."
Boucher's statement was the first confirmation by Washington that the
United States supports the dismantling of the PKK.
The State Department spokesman said the United States has not been
involved in efforts to relocate Kurdish insurgents who have rejected a
Turkish amnesty offer. Ankara has offered amnesty or reduced prison
sentences for Kurdish insurgents who surrender and cooperate with Turkish
authorities.
"We're not involved in any way," Boucher said. "We were not encouraging
political asylum in any way."