Iraqi pres says relations not affected by Turkish raids
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Baghdad's "good relations" with the Turkish government has not been affected by Turkish raids on the outlawed PKK in northern Iraq, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani told in an interview with the Greek newspaper Eleftherotypia.
"We understand who is responsible for these attacks," Talabani said, but he stressed his opposition to the PKK using Iraq as a base. Â
Turkey, provided with intelligence on PKK movements in Iraq by the U.S., has stepped up military action against PKK, which is listed as a terrorist group by much of the international community including the U.S. and the EU, since December, carrying out several air strikes and a week-long ground incursion into northern Iraq in February, where more than 2,000 PKK separatists take refuge
"We have often appealed for our Kurdish brothers in Turkey to stop the war and join the political struggle. If they don't do it, we ask them to leave Iraq ... if they refuse to listen to us, they are giving a pretext to certain Turkish circles," AFP quoted Talabani, himself a Kurd.
Ankara has also begun to establish a dialogue mechanism with the Kurdish administration of northern Iraq, an important shift in Turkey's foreign policy as part of its intensified fight against the separatist PKK on both diplomatic and military fronts.Â
Turkish Prime Minister is expected to pay a visit to Iraq soon to meet Iraqi top officials including Talabani.
Photo: DHA