(dpa) - As Turkish troops continued military operations against Kurdish separatists in northern Iraq, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan attempted to calm concerns that the incursion could lead to instability in Iraq by reiterating that the operations sole aim was the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK).
"I want to make this clear and underline this once again. These operations are not directed at the administration in northern Iraq. They are only directed at the terrorist organization.
"They are aimed at cleansing the (region) of terrorist camps. Our sole target is the terrorist organization," Erdogan told fellow Justice and Development Party (AKP) parliamentarians and supporters in Ankara on Tuesday.
"Our armed forces are taking every precaution in order that the people of (northern Iraq) are not hurt," Erdogan said, adding that Turkey has always supported the territorial integrity of Iraq and that the PKK was a danger to the stability of Iraq.
The prime minister said that Turkey was continuing to trade with Iraq and provide electricity, saying this was an example that Turkey regards Iraq and the Iraqi people as friends.
Erdogan said the military operations were going well and that the soldiers would return home in the "shortest possible time."