Turkish defense minister meets top Iraqi officials in Baghdad

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Turkey's top defence official met with several Iraqi leaders on a visit to Baghdad on Monday for discussions that centered around military cooperation, according to a statement.

As part of the first official state visit between the neighboring countries this year, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar visited the Iraqi capital to meet with President Barham Salih, Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, Defense Minister Jouma Anad and Interior Minister Othman al-Ghanmi.

In his meeting with the Turkish official, Kadhimi stressed the need to implement a number of agreements surrounding military cooperation and coordination, settled between the two countries during his visit to Ankara in December, according to an official statement by the media office of the Prime Minister.

Tensions between the two countries heightened over the summer, when Turkey began fresh air and ground military operations in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq’s disputed territories in mid-June, with the stated aim of removing suspected Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) targets from the area. The ground operation, Claw-Tiger, concluded in September.

Numerous civilians have been killed in the operations.

Turkey regards the PKK, an armed group that has struggled for the rights of Kurds in Turkey for decades, a terrorist organization.

Baghdad in July condemned Ankara for its ongoing military operation across the Kurdistan Region, describing it as "detrimental" to "regional peace” and accused Ankara of violating Iraqi sovereignty.

Without naming any specific groups, Kadhimi emphasized "Iraq's rejection of any threat or terrorist activity targeting neighboring Turkey from any Iraqi territory, pointing out that the Iraqi army is ready to combat such threats,” reads the statement, agreeing to further military cooperation between the countries.

The premier also followed up on Turkey’s investment promises from the Kuwait Conference to support Iraq in 2018.

In February 2018, Iraq received pledges of $30 billion, mostly in credit facilities and investment, from allies such as Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Turkey, which promised to give Iraq $5 billion in credit lines, Reuters reported.

Kadhimi visited Ankara in mid-December, to discuss boosting trade relations, reconstruction, and the "fight against terror" with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in his first visit to the country since taking office in May.

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