Politics

Iraqi president says sovereignty needs to be respected in meeting with Turkish president Erdogan

"Sovereignty of each state must be respected, he said, while interference, attacks or any action that could threaten peace and security must be rejected."

Wladimir van Wilgenburg 2021/09/23 13:45

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is in New York for the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, met with President Barham Salih of Iraq at the Turkevi Center. (Photo: Presidency of the Republic of Turkey)

Iraq Iraq Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan Barham Salih

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s President Barham Salih on Wednesday met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where he underlined the importance of sovereignty amidst increased Turkish strikes in the Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province.

“Sovereignty of each state must be respected, he said, while interference, attacks or any action that could threaten peace and security must be rejected,” a press release of the Iraqi presidency said.

However, regional and international efforts should be stepped up collectively to build regional and international peace, security, the Iraqi President underscored.

Salih also underlined the importance of dialogue, adding “that establishing the foundations of stability in the region, and de-escalating the crisis there, are of great importance.”

For his part, Erdogan reportedly praised the efforts made by Iraq to ease tensions in the region through dialogue. He also stressed that Turkey wants a secure and stable Iraq.

The Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Coordinator for International Advocacy Dindar Zebari announced on Wednesday that more than 800 villages in mountainous border regions have fled their homes as a result of armed conflict between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Turkey’s armed forces.

The PKK has been locked in a decades-long conflict against Ankara over Kurdish rights in Turkey that has led to tens of thousands of deaths on both sides.

The group is headquartered in the Kurdistan Region's Qandil Mountains, mostly in rural areas along the Turkish and Iranian borders.

Officials from both Iraq and the Kurdistan Region have repeatedly called on Turkey and the PKK to take their fight away from areas populated by civilians, thousands of whom have been displaced or sustained damage to their farms, livestock, or homes.

Others have suffered serious injury or even death as a result of skirmishes or Turkish attacks against suspected PKK positions.