Turkey polishes Iraqi relations, champions Turkmen in politics
The Turkish foreign minister's recent visit to Baghdad and Erbil included a push for appointing Turkmens to Cabinet positions in Iraq.
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq — In addition to discussing bilateral relations and an energy deal on his visit to Iraq April 28-29, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu addressed the issue of Turkmen participation in the government.
Cavusoglu spoke of the importance of gaining Turkmen representation in both the still-forming Cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Erbil and the Cabinet-influx of the central Iraqi government in Baghdad.
"Our Turkmen brothers and sisters, the second-largest ethnic group of the KRG and third of Iraq, should be duly represented both in Iraq and the KRG,” Cavusoglu tweeted April 29 after meeting with members of the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) political movement in Erbil. He also held separate talks with KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani and Masrour Barzani, head of the Kurdistan Region Security Council and prime minister-designate.
Aiden Maruf, an ITF member of the Kurdish regional parliament who participated in the Cavusoglu meeting, told Al-Monitor, "Cavusoglu’s visit was mainly aimed at boosting political, diplomatic and trade ties between Ankara and Erbil, as well as Ankara and Baghdad."
