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Outgoing Abadi signs blow to Turkish exports

Turkey sees trouble in the new internal customs checkpoints the federal government has established in northern Iraq.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi attend a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, August 14, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1274635EE0

While Turkey was eagerly anticipating a new government in Baghdad to sort out many problems with Iraq, a last minute decision by the outgoing prime minister has added a fresh item to the list of ongoing disagreements between the two countries.

Haider al-Abadi unexpectedly signed a decree to set up three new checkpoints in government-controlled areas in northern Iraq that will effectively slash Turkey’s trade with it. The trucks that enter the country normally pass through the sole border crossing that is controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and will now also have to pass at least one of these additional checkpoints.

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