Iraq bans PKK as security ties with Turkey gain momentum
Iraq bans PKK in alignment with Turkey to combat terrorism threat.
- Bilawal Riaz
- 1 min read
Iraq’s National Security Council has officially banned the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), known for fighting against Turkish forces for Kurdish self-rule in Turkey. This decision was announced following a high-level security meeting in Baghdad, with a joint Iraqi-Turkish statement welcoming the move. The PKK, recognized as a terrorist group by Ankara, Washington, and the European Union, is based in northern Iraqi Kurdistan. In efforts to combat PKK terrorism, Turkish officials engaged in talks with their Iraqi counterparts and agreed to form joint committees focusing on various areas including counterterrorism, trade, agriculture, and energy. The ban aligns Iraqi and Turkish positions on this issue as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans his first visit to Iraq in over a decade. Both countries emphasized the importance of Iraq’s unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, while acknowledging the PKK as a security threat to both nations.