Commenting on Iraq, Erdogan said that the country would find relief if coalition forces announced a withdrawal schedule.
He reiterated remarks made by U.S. President George W. Bush who said the U.S. would not stay in Iraq if Iraq did not want it to.
Erdogan said it was of the utmost importance for Turkey to strengthen the Iraqi government and maintain order. A division of Iraq would be akin to the Balkan civil wars, he added.
He added that everyone should respect the Iraqi elections explaining that both Turkey and Iran saw the al-Maliki government as a chance.
On Lebanon, Erdogan brought up the crisis between the Siniora government and Hezbollah.
“Tehran believes that Hezbollah is not represented in the government in proportion to the Shiite population. There will be proposals from both sides for a solution and we will work on them. We will handle this issue during my visit to Syria,” said the prime minister.
