PLEDGE: Victor Erdogan, before a portrait of Atatürk, promises not to mix government and religion
TURKEY
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, head of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) party, was appointed Prime Minister after parliament overturned a law barring him from public office because of a conviction for inciting religious hatred. He is likely to call for a second parliamentary vote on a motion to allow the deployment of U.S. troops on Turkish soil. Washington wants to open a northern front in any war against Iraq and needs Turkish bases to do so. Parliament's approval of the deployment would be controversial, since the Turkish public is overwhelmingly antiwar. The cash-strapped government has negotiated a $15...
