Soviet Soldier Seeks Asylum in Turkey

Turkish authorities were questioning a Soviet soldier who crossed into Turkey and asked for political asylum, the semiofficial Anatolia News Agency reported Monday.

Emrullah Zeybek, the governor of the eastern Erzurum province, told Anatolia that the Soviet private was picked up by police after apparently arriving on a train. He did not give the soldier’s name or say when he was picked up.

The governor said the soldier’s request for a asylum would be taken under consideration if it became clear that he had defected for political reasons. If not, he would be sent back to the Soviet Union if it turned out he had a criminal record.