Erdogan claims Turkey prepping for Mosul action
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to keep troops near Mosul and says preparations for Turkish role "in the field" are underway.
As the battle to retake Mosul from the Islamic State gathers speed, the ongoing row between Baghdad and Ankara over the presence of Turkish troops in Iraq shows no signs of abating. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues to insist that Turkey has a “historic responsibility” to participate in the offensive and that it will do so whether Iraq wants it to or not.
Erdogan's blustering is prompting growing concern in Baghdad — and in Washington — of unilateral Turkish action in its former Ottoman dominion that could derail the Mosul campaign.
Erdogan asserted, “We will be in the field and at the table. Our preparations for the field are underway.” His speeches on Oct. 17 and Oct. 18, which also invoked a 1920 document adopted by the Turkish parliament including Mosul and Kirkuk as part of modern Turkey, came amid unconfirmed reports from Iraqi sources that Turkish troops were massing north of the Iraqi border.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim claimed that the US-led coalition had “reached agreement” on a Turkish role.
