Turkiye, Iraq to scale up combat against terrorism

ISTANBUL, Turkiye and Iraq signed a MoU on military and security cooperation and the combat against terrorism, said Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Thursday. Both countries made headway in realizing the visions of their leaders and increasing awareness about the risks of PKK presence in Iraq, Fidan said at a joint press conference with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein following their meeting in Ankara. Today's agreement provides for launching training and coordination centers in Baghdad city and Bashiqa town in north Iraq, which will take counter-terrorism cooperation to a new height, the Turkish minister pointed out. On his part, Hussein said the joint high-level security mechanism convened its fourth meeting earlier today to discuss the implementation of the 27 agreements which were signed on April 22 during the visit to Iraq by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The documents cover cooperation in a wide array of areas, including economy, trade, energy, water, c ulture, tourism, health, transport, agriculture, education, youth and sports, and social security, the Turkish minister noted. Today's meetings also dealt with coordination in the face of the rising threats of organized crime, illegal immigration and drug trafficking, he added. Source : Kuwait News Agency