The two NATO allies had appeared to be heading towards a diplomatic collision when the Turkish parliament last month narrowly rejected a US request to use the country as a springboard for attacks on Iraq.

But Powell and his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul were all smiles after Wednesday's talks during which the two sides agreed to resupply US troops in northern Iraq through Turkish territory and mind each others' interests in the Kurdish-held region.

The relief of Turkish leaders at winning back the favour of the United States was obvious.

"Doubts over Turkish-American ties have been dispelled. The talks have been very useful, our alliance has been freshened up and reaffirmed," Gul told reporters on Thursday.

A spokesman for President Ahmet Necdet Sezer for his part said the two sides were "at a point where we can look with more confidence at the strength of our relations in the future".

The United States is an indispensable ally for Turkey: Washington was instrumental in securing billions of IMF aid for the crisis-hit Turkish economy, and it has also been a staunch proponent of Turkey's bid to join the European Union.

But newspaper commentators appeared more cautious on Thursday, preferring to see Powell's visit more as the beginning of a lengthy amelioration rather than an immediate recovery.

"Everybody knows that Powell's visit will not suffice in remedying the strained ties, but it will change the atmosphere and prepare the ground to put long-running relations back on track," an editorial in the mass-circulation Hurriyet daily said.

Interests, rather than the traditional partnership, will determine the course of bilateral ties, others said.

"From now on, Turkey and the United States will live the life of a couple who have fallen out of love, but have decided not to divorce for the sake of their children: in the same house, but in separate rooms," the Sabah newspaper said.

A point put more bluntly by a senior Turkish official on condition of anonymnity: "Speaking in general terms, in the long-run Turkey needs the United States and the United States needs Turkey. This deep-rooted relationship will contine as long as it serves mutual interests."

The Turkish parliament's refusal to allow the deployment of 62,000 troops in Turkey had dealt a major blow to US plans to invade Iraq from the north, forcing the country to airlift or parachute troops into northern Iraq.

And Ankara's plans to send in troops to the region to ensure its border security only served to raise tension as Washington worried that such a move would complicate its own military campaign, and repeatedly warned against it.

Ankara fears that Iraqi Kurds may declare independence in their autonomus region, and set an example for Turkey's own restive Kurdish community just when a bloody Kurdish rebellion for self-rule has scaled down.

But Wednesday's talks yielded a mutual understanding on the long-standing dispute: Turkey appeared ready to listen to its ally, while the United States pledged not to let Turkish interest be undermined.

"We are not dying to enter northern Iraq," a Turkish official said.

"If a need arises, we want to do it in the smoothest way possible ... We want to do everything in coordination (with the United States) and in a transparent manner," he added.

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