Turkish minister plays down early Iraq incursion

KIEV (Reuters) - Turkey's defense minister played down suggestions of any imminent cross-border incursion into northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels there after the guerrillas killed more than a dozen Turkish soldiers.

Asked if there would be a military response to Sunday's attacks, Vecdi Gonul said: "Not urgently. They (Turkish troops) are planning a cross-border (incursion)."

"We'd like to do these things with the Americans," added Gonul, who was speaking to reporters in Kiev, Ukraine, after talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.