(MENAFN- Daily News Egypt) Turkey will continue the withdrawal of its military forces from Iraq, according to an announcement from the Turkish foreign ministry.
The announcement comes days after US President Barack Obama urged Ankara to take this measure in order to ease tensions between the neighbouring countries.
"Taking into account the sensitivities on the Iraqi side"Turkey will continue the process it has already begun to withdraw its troops stationed in Mosul province," the Turkish foreign ministry said in a prepared statement on Saturday
Earlier in the week, Baghdad described the Turkish deployment of between 150 and 300 soldiers and 20 tanks to the Bashiqa camp near Mosul as an illegal incursion.
A Turkish senior official contended that the troops had been deployed to protect Turkish trainers working with Iraqi forces in the battle with "Islamic State" (IS).
In their statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said there had been "a lack of communication" with Iraq regarding the deployment of their troops.
Iraq submitted a formal complaint to the UN to call for the removal of Turkish forces.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.