"Turkey appeals to UN for Kirkuk
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Foreign Minister Gul sends a letter to Annan, warning of potential instability in Kirkuk, as one Arab party boycotts polls in the city
ANKARA � Turkish Daily News
Foreign Minister Abdullah G�l sent a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, complaining of �artificial� population shifts towards the strategic northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk ahead of elections in Iraq, officials said.
Without naming Iraqi Kurds, G�l said in his letter, conveyed to the U.N. on Jan. 19, the activities of some groups might lead to instability in the region.
Tension in the oil-rich city runs high less than a week ahead of the Jan. 30 elections. An Arab party said yesterday that it would boycott elections in Kirkuk in protest of electoral authorities' decision to allow thousands of Kurdish migrants to vote."
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