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Turkish President Appoints Erdogan Prime Minister - 2003-03-11


The leader of Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party -- Recep Tayyip Erdogan -- has been appointed prime minister.

Mr. Erdogan said Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer appointed him prime minister on Tuesday and asked him to form a new government. He said he would submit a cabinet list to the president as soon as possible.

On Sunday, Mr. Erdogan won a seat in the 550-member legislature in a special by-election, paving the way for today's appointment.

His appointment comes after fellow party member Abdullah Gul resigned earlier in the day. Mr. Gul's resignation came as no surprise, as he had previously said he would step-down if Mr. Erdogan entered parliament.

Mr. Erdogan has said his new government will decide whether parliament will vote again on allowing US troops into the country for a possible war against Iraq.

He says talks with the US are continuing, but that he wants the United States to clarify what Turkey's role would be in a post-war Iraq, before he resubmits a U-S troop deployment motion to parliament.

Earlier, he told the Associated Press that Turkey may not be eager to undergo the risks of a war with Iraq if it will not play a part in a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq.

The U-S military wants to use Turkish military bases to open a northern front against Iraq in case of war. In exchange, Washington has offered Turkey a multi-billion dollar package of U-S grants and loan guarantees.

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