Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke at a joint press conference held in Ankara with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.
Highlights from Fidan's remarks are as follows:
We held our High-Level Meeting. We have very valuable participants from Iraq. We had met in the same format last December and in March of this year.
We are pleased to see that awareness regarding the PKK is increasing in Iraq. We discussed the security and military dimensions of our relations. We evaluated opportunities for commercial cooperation. We intensified our negotiations on the draft memorandum on military, security, and counter-terrorism that we have been discussing.
I would also like to announce a historic development. The memorandum of understanding in question was just signed. We will continue our contacts without interruption. I wish for the memorandum of understanding to be beneficial for both countries.
We intensified our discussions regarding military security and counter-terrorism. The memorandum of understanding in question was just signed by our defense ministers.
Our cooperation will be moved to a higher level. We desire to advance the consensus we are developing with Iraq on counter-terrorism with concrete steps on the ground.
Another important development is that we have decided to start the visa liberalization practice for our Iraqi brothers and sisters under the age of 15 and over the age of 50 on September 1.
Our region is going through a very painful process. Israel is ruthlessly targeting civilians. We are of one voice and one heart with Iraq regarding Palestine.
CENTER TO BE ESTABLISHED IN BAGHDAD
A Joint Security Coordination Center will be established in Baghdad and a Joint Training and Cooperation Center will be established in Bashiqa between Turkey and Iraq for counter-terrorism.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hussein: "(The security memorandum with Turkey) This is the first memorandum of understanding in the history of the two countries"
News Source: AA
