Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today he had discussed with Iraq’s prime minister joint steps the two countries could take against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants, Reuters reported.
Erdogan welcomed Iraq’s decision to outlaw the PKK, which is viewed as a terrorist organization by Ankara, the EU and the US.
At a joint news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani in Baghdad, Erdogan said he shared his strong belief that the PKK’s presence on Iraqi soil would end as soon as possible.
Erdogan also said that the most important topic in today’s talks was the fight against terrorism and that Ankara is ready to support Iraq’s fight against terrorism.
Turkey and Iraq discussed security cooperation and agreed to deal with challenges arising from armed groups that could cooperate with terrorist groups, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said.
He also announced that Iraq and Turkey today signed a strategic framework agreement in the fields of security, energy and economic cooperation.
Erdogan and Mohammed Shia al-Sudani oversaw the signing of a quadrilateral memorandum of understanding between Turkey, Iraq, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates for cooperation on Iraq’s $17 billion Development Road project. The 1,200-kilometer rail and road project aims to turn Iraq into a transit hub connecting Asia and Europe with a link between Iraq’s Grand Al-Faw port and Turkey.
Ankara and Baghdad also signed a new strategic agreement for the modernization of irrigation systems for a period of 10 years. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which originate in southeastern Turkey, account for about 98 percent of Iraq’s key water resources, TASS notes.
Erdogan’s visit to neighboring Iraq today is the first by a Turkish leader since 2011 and comes after years of strained relations as Ankara stepped up cross-border operations against PKK militants based in mountainous, mostly Kurdish northern Iraq. The purpose of the visit is to smooth relations with the signing of numerous agreements in areas such as security, energy and trade.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met today in Baghdad with his Iraqi counterpart Abdel Latif Rashid. The President of Turkey emphasized during the talks that Iraq must be cleansed of all forms of terrorism.
Rashid – the most senior Kurdish representative in Iraq – said Baghdad supports the joint fight against terrorism and opposes Iraqi territory being used for attacks on neighboring countries, the Iraqi presidency said. Rashid has also stressed that Baghdad opposes attacks on Iraqi territory.
Baghdad says Turkish military operations violate Iraqi sovereignty and kill civilians. However, Ankara insists it needs to defend itself against the PKK.
Turkey is planning another strike against PKK militants this spring and is seeking Iraq’s cooperation in the form of a joint coordination center as well as Baghdad’s recognition of the PKK threat.
