U.S. General Discusses Arrests With Turkish Officials

A top U.S. general made an unexpected visit to Turkey on Tuesday in a bid to defuse tensions over the United States’ detention of 11 Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq.

Gen. James L. Jones, commander of U.S. forces in Europe, met for about two hours with senior Turkish diplomatic and military officials, including Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, chief of the military staff, and presented preliminary information about the detention last week of the Turkish soldiers, according to a U.S. Embassy official who requested anonymity.

U.S. officials have alleged that the Turks were plotting to harm Iraqi Kurdish officials but have provided few details. Turkey has denied any plot.

The 11 Turkish special forces soldiers were detained Friday in the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah and released Sunday after a bustle of diplomacy.

The detentions outraged Turkey, further damaging relations between the two nations after Turkey in March snubbed a U.S. request to admit about 60,000 U.S. troops in preparation for the invasion of Iraq.

Turkey also is deeply concerned about the Kurds’ growing influence in Iraq, a development it fears could encourage Kurdish separatists on its own soil.

Both sides agreed that a Turkish-U.S. military committee would meet today in Ankara, the Turkish capital, to investigate the detentions.

The committee was scheduled to begin work Tuesday, but the meeting was rescheduled at Washington’s request, according to the Turkish foreign minister.