NEW YORK — Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, speaking to Al-Monitor during his visit to New York for this week’s UN General Assembly session, addressed his country’s stance on the upcoming independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan, EU-Turkey ties, Ankara’s expanding cooperation with Russia and concerns about the Gulen movement’s influence within the US judiciary.
Cavusoglu, a founding member of the ruling Justice and Development Party, maintained Turkey’s opposition to the independence referendum scheduled for Sept. 25. The referendum “will not bring stability or more rights to the Kurds in Iraq,” he said, calling the proposed plebiscite a “big mistake.”