Turkish President Abdullah Gul said Sunday, "the issue of Iran's nuclear program should be resolved through diplomacy. Otherwise, the same things in Iraq will happen again. We do not have the patience to see all those things once again. Therefore, we are making intense efforts to resolve the issue through diplomacy."

President Gul told reporters on his way to South Korea to attend the ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of the Korean War, "the embargo imposed on Iraq caused many security problems and a heavy economic burden. Sanctions cannot solve problems. We have already seen it in Iraq."

"We do not want nuclear weapons in our region. The issue of Iran's nuclear program should be resolved through diplomacy. Otherwise, the same things in Iraq will happen again. We do not have the patience to see all those things once again. Therefore, we are making intense efforts to resolve the issue through diplomacy. We are making efforts since we are a neighboring country," he said.

"Actually, Iran has remained at the negotiation table since we voted against the UN resolution imposing a fourth round of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program last week," he said.

When reminded of Israel's statement that it would not make an apology for killing of nine Turks during a raid on the six-ship flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, President Gul said, "how to compensate it is up to them."


AA