Turkey and
Iraq have pledged to work towards greater military cooperation in the fight
against "Islamic State" militants. The ultra-radical Sunni fighters
control large swathes of territory in northern Iraq and Syria.
Deutsche Welle, 25 Dec 2014
Iraqi Prime
Minister Haider al-Abadi told reporters at a joint press conference with his
Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu in Ankara on Thursday that he had presented
a "list" of requests for specific types of support in the fight
against "Islamic State" militants.
Abadi
described the IS as a "threat to the whole region."
Therefore,
there is a need for cooperation. That's what we expect of Turkey,"
al-Abadi said. "Whether it is military, intelligence sharing, training or
even arms - these were talked about," he added.
He also
indicated that Turkey may be prepared to provide arms to forces loyal to the
Iraqi government.
"There
are preparations being made with the assistance of the Turkish side in
providing us with weapons," Abadi said.
More
military training possible
For his
part, Davutoglu alluded to the fact that the Turkish military was already
playing a role in the fight against the IS in Iraq, since it began training
peshmerga forces last month. He also said the training could be extended to
Iraq's National Guard.
"Our
defense ministers will carry out a more detailed study on this issue. We
already have provided support in terms of military training. We are ready to
give whatever further assistance we can in these areas," Davutoglu said.
"We
are ready to give any kind of support against terrorist organizations," he
added, mentioning not just IS, but the Kurdistan Workers Party, (PKK), which
from 1984 to 2013 fought an armed campaign against the Turkish state.
In late
October, Turkey also allowed around 150 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters from Iraq to cross into Syria from its territory.
Although it
is a member of the Western military alliance NATO, Turkey, which shares a
1,200-kilometer (756 mile) border with Syria, has declined to play a direct
role in the US-led coalition, which has been conducting an air campaign against
IS militants in both Syria and northern Iraq.
pfd/sb (AP, Reuters, AFP)
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