Echoes of the new Kurdistan Region and Turkey affairs
Whatever agreements may or may not come forth, it is a fact that "the Kurds have always condemned violence whether by the Turkish side or by the PKK."
Last week, the president of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, Massoud Barzani, met with a Turkish delegation in Baghdad. The Turkish official, Murad Ozcelik, from Turkey's foreign ministry for Iraqi affairs, described the meeting as positive. Neither side declared the content of their closed meeting, but media from both sides reported that the meeting resulted in agreements between the Kurdistan Region and Turkey to attack Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and recognize it as a terrorist organization, among other issues.
"The reports are baseless," indicated Safeen Dizayee, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) foreign relations. He added that the only agreement between the two sides in the meeting was to continue the meetings.
"After three years, this is the first meeting between the region's president and the Turkish delegation. In a meeting of this sort, the two sides showed their intention for beginning talks. No more details or mechanisms for settling differences were discussed in the meeting," said Dizayee, who as a KRG official had attended several meetings with Turkish officials in the past.
Also, regarding any possible agreements, Dizayee pointed to the constitutional commitments the Kurds do not seal agreement independently but they act according to the agreement between Iraq and Turkey as far as Kurdistan Region is a part of Iraq.
"We understand Turkey's worries and we want to cooperate with them, but this does not mean we take part in military operations. We have imposed measures on the PKK from the last year and we will continue them," said Dizayee, who affirmed that Kurdistan Region is ready for any peaceful cooperation with neighboring Turkey...
Full story: http://www.kurdishglobe.net/displayArticle.jsp?id=4CA7C202AC1C182EAFB318895D8B868A
