Turkish Parliament votes to allow troops into Iraq.

ANKARA, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Turkey's parliament resoundingly
approved a motion on Wednesday allowing troops to cross into
northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels hiding there, brushing
aside appeals from the United States and the Baghdad government.

As parliament voted in Ankara, U.S. President George W. Bush
said it would not be in Turkey's interests to send troops into
northern Iraq.

Washington fears a Turkish incursion could destabilise the
most peaceful part of Iraq and possibly the wider region by
encouraging others such as arch-foe Iran to intervene.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has played down
expectations of any imminent attack, but the parliamentary vote
gives NATO's second biggest army the legal basis to cross the
mountainous border as and when it sees fit.

Ankara's stance has helped propel global oil prices to new
record highs above $88 a barrel, though they eased on Wednesday.

"We have proposed this motion for the peace and welfare of
our country. After accepting this motion, we will do what is
necessary for the country's interests," Deputy Prime Minister
Cemil Cicek told parliament.

Cicek stressed that any military action would target only
the rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). He
said the government would also continue to use economic and
diplomatic measures in its fight against terrorism.

Opposition parties, rallying behind the government, slammed
U.S. policy in the region, reiterating Turkish fears it will
lead to the creation of an independent Kurdish state in northern
Iraq -- a move Ankara fears could fan separatism among its own
large ethnic Kurdish population.

Only the small pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP)
spoke against the motion, arguing that military action would
worsen the economic plight of Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast.



OIL

Fearing possible rebel sabotage, Turkey has beefed up
security for a major oil pipeline carrying Caspian crude from
the Azeri capital Baku via Georgia to the Turkish Mediterranean
port of Ceyhan, a senior energy ministry source told Reuters.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki telephoned Erdogan to
reiterate his commitment to combating the PKK. Baghdad said it
would send a high-level delegation to Turkey.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who is a Kurd, condemned the
PKK tactics but urged Turkey to show restraint.

"We consider the activities of the PKK against the interests
of the Kurdish people and against the interests of Turkey. We
have asked the PKK to stop fighting and end military activity,"
Talabani said during a visit to Paris.

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and France joined the chorus of
calls for restraint and a diplomatic solution to the crisis.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said during an official
visit to Ankara he backed Turkey's fight against terrorism.

Ankara blames the PKK, considered a terrorist organisation
by the United States and the European Union, for the deaths of
more than 30,000 people since the group launched its armed
struggle for an ethnic homeland in southeast Turkey in 1984.

Analysts say that despite its tough rhetoric Turkey may
limit itself to aerial bombardment of rebel targets and small
forays across the border while avoiding a major incursion.
(Additional reporting by Orhan Coskun and Evren Mesci in
Ankara, Mark John in Brussels and Baghdad bureau)


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