India will lend ear to Turkey’s Kurdish dilemma

India today came out in favour of the United Nations playing a more significant role in Iraq. Be it on improving the security situation or the political and economic reconstruction of the war-torn country, New Delhi made it clear that the UN ought to play a ‘‘key role’’.

Briefing mediapersons on the upcoming visit of the Prime Minister to Turkey and then the UN, Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal said the situation in Iraq and the debate over sending a multinational force there is bound to figure prominently at both places.

‘‘One of the main themes at the UN General Assembly starting September 23 will be the role and relevance of the UN following the Iraq war. Everybody feels about the failure of UN to act collectively in dealing with the situation in Iraq. There is no unanimity among the Permanent Five in the UN Security Council over the role UN needs to play. The US has been talking of a vital role while the French have been calling for a central role.’’

Sibal said New Delhi would want the UN to play a more important part. ‘‘The External Affairs Minister has also said earlier that we would want UN to play a key role. We are not members of the UNSC so we will watch closely the developments on the issue, but in this context, India has been voicing for a long time the need to introduce reforms within the UN.’’

Vajpayee, however, will start his 13-day tour abroad with a four-day visit to Turkey. He will be the first Indian PM to visit the country in the past 15 years. Sibal said Vajpayee will hold wide-ranging talks with President Ahmet Nacdet Sezer and PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan on issues of mutual interest. ‘‘Iraq neighbours Turkey and it has been facing problems on the Kurdish question (with Iraq). In fact, there have been occasions when Turkey has spoken in terms of an intervention which of course threatens the sovereignty of Iraq. We will, thus, like to listen to their views carefully,’’ said Sibal.

Drawing attention to the commonalities between the two countries, Sibal said both have been victims of terror for a long period and have upheld ideals of secularism and democracy. Both countries have been in close touch with each other in recent past which was symbolised by External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha’s trip to Turkey last month — the first by an Indian Foreign Minister since 1976.

Turkey has responded by deciding to reopen operation of Turkish Airline from Istanbul to New Delhi. Also, Vajpayee will unveil a bust of Tagore and inaugurate a street named after him at Ankara.

Vajpayee is slated to meet US President George W. Bush on September 23. ‘‘He is likely to meet the Russian President but the exact dates are being worked out,’’ Sibal said.