A Turkish official said on Wednesday that Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari will travel to Turkey soon, as part of the attempts made to intensify the bilateral relations between the two countries.
This expected trip comes after postponing the allegedly visit of Turkish president Abdullah Gul to Iraq, where he was expected to meet Iraqi president Jalal Talabani and also visit Erbil, Kurdistan region’s capital.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Burak Özügergin said Zebari would arrive at Ankara soon but did not specify an exact date for the planned visit.
Iraq’s vice president, Tariq al Hashimi, is also expected to travel to Turkey, although the Turkish Foreign Ministry neither confirmed nor denied the trip.
Health reasons are expected to be behind Al Hashimi visit, who earlier had visited Turkey for a nose operation.
Commenting on the reasons behind the delay of president Gul’s visit, the spokesman said President Abdullah Gülhad an ear problem that makes flying difficult.
In comments on the trilateral mechanism involving American, Iraqi (including KRG) and Turkish officials on PKK problem, the spokesman said the mechanism would soon be active. "We can say an understanding has emerged with the local authorities," he said, referring to KRG.
However, Özügergin once again repeated that when necessary, Turkey would continue to take military and political measures in the fight against PKK, in compliance with international law.
