Press release

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Iraq, Mr Ali Reza Konay, against the background of the continuous violations and abuses of the Turkish army, including: the recent large-scale military operation, which affected the areas of Matina, Zab, Afashin, and Bassian in northern Iraq.

The ministry handed the Turkish Ambassador a strong note of protest calling for putting an end to such provocative acts, and the unacceptable violations.

The Iraqi government renews its demand for the withdrawal of all Turkish troops from Iraqi territories in a manner that reflects binding respect for national sovereignty.

Iraq has the legal right to take the necessary and appropriate measures in accordance with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and the rules of international law over such hostile and unilateral acts, which take place without coordination with the Iraqi government.

Based on all of the above, we state that the use of Article (51) of the Charter of the United Nations in cases of violations by Turkish troops is not based on legal grounds, as the aforementioned article does not allow the violation of the sovereignty of an independent country.

Here, we recall that the existence of most elements of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq has been as a result of an agreement between the Turkish government and the aforementioned party, coinciding with Iraq’s rejection and protest of what we believe as the export of an internal Turkish challenge, to the territories of Iraq.

Consequently, the violation of Iraq’s sovereignty will not be an appropriate ground to find participatory and sustainable solutions to security challenges, which prioritize increasing the security cooperation between the two sides as an effective way to realise the desired interests and confront challenges.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Baghdad, 19 April, 2022