TURKEY LAUNCHES EXERCISE NEAR IRAQ ANKARA — Turkey has been conducting a major military exercise near the Iraqi border. Turkish sources and media reports assert that the Land Forces Command has amassed a fleet of main battle tanks in the southern city of Cizre. They said the MBT exercise, comprised of 60 M-60A3 tanks, was conducted in the mountains along the Iraqi border. "The Turkish exercise was meant to bolster capability to respond to terrorist threats," a Turkish source said. The sources said Turkey has demonstrated a show of force toward the Kurdish Workers Party based in northern Iraq. On Feb. 28, they said, the MBT force practiced maneuvers for five hours along Mount Gabar. Turkey has warned the United States that it would not allow PKK bases to operate in Iraq's Kandil mountains. An estimated 5,000 PKK fighters have been based in northern Iraq, protected by the Kurdish autonomous government. The Turkish military has also stepped up air operations along the Iraqi border. The sources reported low-flying helicopter and fixed-wing reconnaissance missions in the area of Cudi and Gabar in late February. On Feb. 27, U.S. National Intelligence Director John McConnell said Ankara would not allow the formation of an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq. McConnell did not elaborate.