ANKARA -- Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said Saturday he stressed the need for "international legitimacy" for a military strike on Iraq, in talks with U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.

Gul, who met earlier Saturday with Powell on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos, told reporters that Turkish lawmakers who have resisted giving full backing to the U.S. war drive must be convinced the world supports the use of force.

"We told him that we place importance on international legitimacy ... that everything should be carried out within the framework of the United Nations," Gul said in remarks broadcast live on Turkish television.

"We told him that under the Turkish constitution many decisions are up to the Parliament and that the Parliament will seek international legitimacy when making decisions ...

and that the Parliament members themselves should be convinced when casting their votes," he added.

NATO member Turkey says its "limited" support for a possible U.S.-led war against Iraq will depend on a separate UN Security Council resolution backing military action against Baghdad.

Ankara is under pressure to allow Washington to use Turkish air bases as launch pads for strikes on its neighbor Iraq and deploy tens of thousands of troops in Turkey in the event of war.

Any such decision requires parliamentary approval.

Observers say that offering Washington support could pose political risks for the country's political leadership, since public opinion staunchly opposes war.

"We told (Powell) that everything possible should be done to achieve a solution without a war. As a matter of fact, he is of the same opinion," Gul said.

Fearful of the potential economic and political fallout of a regional conflict, Turkey has struggled to find a last-minute peaceful resolution to the growing crisis that may see a U.S.-led coalition attack Saddam Hussein's regime.

Gul added that Powell had expressed appreciation over a Turkish peace initiative which brought the foreign ministers of Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Turkey to Istanbul on Thursday.

The ministers adopted a declaration urging Baghdad to display "more active" cooperation with UN arms inspectors and emphasizing that it was up to the UN Security Council to draw conclusions on whether Iraq was complying with UN resolutions on disarmement.

(AFP) yip Erdogan, during the third day of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2003.