The PKK terror group is to be designated as a prohibited organization in Iraq by the National Security Council, while Turkish President Erdogan is scheduled to visit Baghdad after Ramadan, a significant event in the bilateral relations between the two neighbors.
The decision by the Iraqi National Security Council to declare the PKK terrorist organization an illegal organization in Iraq has been warmly received by Turkey.
Following a security discussion in the Iraqi capital between Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein, along with their delegations, Baghdad made its decision known in a joint statement on Thursday.
The announcement follows closely on the heels of a significant development in the two countries’ bilateral relations: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s planned visit to the Iraqi capital following the conclusion of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
According to a joint statement, both nations affirmed that every effort will be taken to ensure President Erdogan’s historic visit to Iraq is a success.
“On X, which was formerly Twitter, we talked about a variety of bilateral and regional issues, as well as the impending visit,” the foreign minister of Iraq stated.
“We stressed the need to strengthen cooperation in the fields of security, trade, energy, water, education, and everything that is in the interest of our countries,” said Hussein.
The two parties held talks about the actions that should be implemented against the terrorist organization PKK and its affiliates that use Iraqi land to attack Turkey.
They emphasized that PKK poses a threat to both countries’ security and that its existence in Iraqi land is against the country’s constitution.
The parties reaffirmed their strong support for the Palestinian cause and shared opinions on regional issues, such as the “massacre amounting to genocide” in Gaza.
Setting up a structural foundation
According to the statement, Turkey and Iraq have decided to step up their efforts to produce a memorandum of agreement that will create a structural framework for their relations in a number of areas, with the goal of establishing frequent contact channels.
Turkey expresses delight with the National Security Council of Iraq’s decision to identify the PKK terrorist group as an organization that is prohibited in the country. joint statement from Turkey and Iraq: pic.twitter.com/AnszQeGJ37
— TRT World (@trtworld) March 14, 2024
Among the Turkish delegation were Deputy Interior Minister Munir Karaloglu, Turkish National Defense Minister Yasar Guler, and Ibrahim Kalin, the head of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT).
In an effort to strengthen bilateral ties, the two sides also agreed to form collaborative committees to cooperate in the areas of trade, agriculture, energy, water, health, and transportation as well as counterterrorism.
After taking up arms against the Turkish state in 1984, the PKK—which was labeled a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and the EU—killed over 40,000 people.
The battleground, which for a long time was primarily in rural southeast Turkey, is now primarily concentrated in the highlands of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq.
With the “Claw” operation, Turkey has been conducting a series of cross-border operations against the PKK in northern Iraq since 2019.
SOURCE: TRTWORLD
