Pace To Speak at Counterterrorism Seminar in Turkey

By Jim Garamone American Forces Press Service

ANKARA, Turkey, March 23, 2006 - The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff arrived here today for discussions with Turkish military leaders and a counterterrorism conference with 11 other chiefs of defense.

Marine Gen. Peter Pace placed a wreath at the tomb of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the father of modern Turkey, and then met with his Turkish counterpart, Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip-Erdogan.

Following the meeting with Erdogan, Pace told reporters that he came to Turkey "to learn how the U.S. military can be a better partner with the Turkish military."

At the counterterrorism seminar, Pace will present a discussion on the Long War to the chiefs and attend several other sessions tomorrow. The Turks designed the symposium to foster dialogue among nations confronting terrorism, officials said. Pace said the dialogue will foster understanding of each country's position and will help set parameters for the war on terror. "You have to understand what the baseline is," he said during an interview. "You have to understand where each country comes from in their thinking about terrorism."

Pace said the meeting will allow him to hear how the countries of the region view the terrorist threat. "That then tells you what's important to them and what's not, and what's possible to do and what's not," he said.

The conference allows leaders to share information, he said. "Participation is important because it gives us all a chance to hear specifically how individual countries are dealing with the problem and to find common threads that reinforce the right things to do," he said.

Biography:

Gen. Peter Pace, USMC [http://www.defenselink.mil/bios/pace_bio.html]

_______________________________________________________ NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK, the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2006/20060323_4588.html.

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