Turkey: No occupation of northern Iraq

TEHRAN, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Turkey's foreign minister Sunday said his country aims to stop attacks by Kurdish rebels but has no interest in occupying northern Iraq.

"Our goal is terrorism and the terrorist groups and not the Iraqi soil and nation," Ali Babacan said at a news conference in Tehran.

Babacan said he was in Iran to "ask our friends to help us in any possible way," reported Fars New Agency.

Babacan accused the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, the PKK, of killing Turkish civilians and soldiers and then regrouping at remote mountain hideouts in northern Iraq.

"The patience of the Turkish government, parliament and nation has come to its end," Babacan said, noting Turkey and Iran enjoy strong diplomatic relations, Fars reported.

The PKK was formed in the 1970s to seek control of land contiguous to Kurdish territory in northern Iraq, bordered by Turkey, Iran and Syria.