Advertisement

Iraq gives Turkey ultimatum

ABC

ABC

Iraq gives Turkey 48 hours to withdraw forces it says entered the country illegally or face “all available options”, including recourse to the UN Security Council.

Baghdad, which is struggling to assert its sovereignty while receiving foreign assistance against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group, said Turkish forces with tanks and artillery entered Iraq without its permission.

Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in a letter to his Iraqi counterpart, Haider al-Abadi, that there would be no deployment of forces until Baghdad’s concerns were addressed.

Turkey in IS oil trade: Russia
• Leaders urge against Russia response
• Russian warplane shot down near border

However, the future of the forces already sent remained unclear.

“In the absence of the withdrawal of these forces within 48 hours, Iraq has the right to use all available options,” including recourse to the Security Council, a statement from Mr Abadi’s office said.

The Turkish forces entered “without the approval or knowledge of the Iraqi government,” it said.

Strained relations over Kurdish region, Syria

In practical terms, Iraq’s options are primarily diplomatic, as its forces are tied down battling IS jihadists and Ankara has a far more powerful military.

Turkey has troops at a base in the Bashiqa area in Nineveh province to train Iraqi Sunni volunteers hoping to retake the nearby city of Mosul from IS, which seized it and swathes of other territory in June 2014.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu sent a letter to Mr Abadi on Sunday to update him about “the training program we have been implementing in Bashiqa since last March as well as tasks and activities of our forces there,” a source in his office said.

Mr Davutoglu said in the letter that “there will be no deployment of forces to Bashiqa until the sensitivities of the Iraqi government are addressed,” the source said.

A day earlier, Mr Davutoglu downplayed the deployment as “routine rotation activity” associated with the training effort, and as “reinforcement against security risks”.

“This is not a new camp,” he said.

“Rather, it is a pre-existing “training facility established to support local volunteer forces’ fight against terrorism”, set up in coordination with the Iraqi defence ministry.”

But Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region, which has forces in the area, said that Turkey had sent military experts and supplies to expand the base.

Iraqi defence minister Khaled al-Obeidi also asked for the forces to be withdrawn in a telephone call with his Turkish counterpart Ismet Yilmaz, the ministry said on Sunday.

Stay informed, daily
A FREE subscription to The New Daily arrives every morning and evening.
The New Daily is a trusted source of national news and information and is provided free for all Australians. Read our editorial charter
Copyright © 2024 The New Daily.
All rights reserved.