Turkey PM Yildirim arrives in Iraq for high-level talks
Turkish Prime Minister, Binali Yildrim. File photo.
Yildirim is heading a high-level delegation that also comprises the ministers of defense, education, energy, economy and trade. He is slated for a visit to Iraqi region of Kurdistan.
Iraqi premier Haider al-Abadi was absent from the reception at Baghdad International Airport, Rudaw agency reported.
This is the second visit to Iraq by a Turkish prime minister since November 2014.
Ankara and Baghdad have recently showed intentions to relieve tensions in bilateral relations that reached its peak in November as Baghdad pressed Ankara to withdraw troops from a military base in Bashiqa.
While Baghdad labelled Turkish military presence as a violation of its sovereignty, Ankara maintained the importance of the deployment, arguing it trained local militias to combat Islamic State militants and to curb the influence of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militia, an organization with a long history of conflict with Ankara which the latter lists as a terrorist organization.
Yildirim said in press statements on Friday that the visit would discuss his country’s military deployment and driving out PKK out of Sinjar region in Nineveh.
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