Speaking at a joint press conference with visiting Afghani Foreign Minister Rangin Spanta, Babacan said the government would make a decision on whether to send troops soon.
“We will make specific decisions on military topics in the next few days,” he said.
Spanta said he had raised the issue of Turkish armed support during their meeting.
“I requested Ali Babacan to help Afghanistan in its fight against terrorists. Babacan’s response was affirmative,” Spanta said.
However, late Monday, General Yasar Buyukanit, the Chief of the Turkish General Staff, said Turkey had no intention of sending troops to Afghanistan at a time when it was engaged in combating the threat posed by the terrorist group the PKK.
“The Turkish Armed Forces is currently fighting against terrorism with tens of thousands of troops in another region,” Buyukanit said during an interview on Turkish television. “I leave it up to your judgment to send Turkish troops to Afghanistan when the Turkish Armed Forces is already fighting against terrorists.”
Turkey has twice commanded the International Security and Assistance Force in Afghanistan and deployed thousands of troops in the country as part of the international contingent trying to stabilize the situation there.
