Washington would have given the green light for Turkey to send troops to Iraq

Turkey would have received the green light from Washington to send troops into northern Iraq in late 2015, according to the Arabic-language newspaper published in London Al Arab, near Riyadh. “The insistence of Turkey to justify its military presence in northern Iraq on behalf of the lute against Islamic terrorists and the failure of efforts by the Iraqi authorities to push the Turkish troops from Iraqi territory show that Ankara took the initiative under the orders of Washington, “the newspaper reported in its edition of January 29.

Speaking on background the acute crisis between Turkey and Russia, sending fresh Turkish troops in northern Iraq, Ankara had provoked strong criticism from the Iraqi government controlled by Shiites and close to Iran . Turkey had argued a simple rotation of its troops present in the vicinity of Mosul and aspiring to train local Sunni tribes to the recovery of this city fell to Daech in June 2014. But the argument did not Baghdad convinced, especially since shortly after the Turkish President Erdogan received the President of the Autonomous Province of Iraqi Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani in Ankara, raising fears the Iraqi authorities an alliance between Turks and Iraqi Kurds would reduce to none Mosul regaining their hopes.

The Al Arab newspaper adds that the recent statements by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu under which the Turkish military presence in northern Iraq had the support of the international community betray the existence of a secret agreement between Ankara and Washington on sending the Turkish troops in the region. The newspaper points out that these troops are still in northern Iraq, near Mosul, which remains under the control of the jihadist Islamic state, despite repeated calls by Baghdad authorities in order to a withdrawal of the Turkish troops. On December 8, the Arab League condemned the deployment of Turkish troops in northern Iraq, referred to as a “intervention”.

Echoing the criticism raised by the Turkish decision to send troops into northern Iraq without the approval of Baghdad under the pretext of mentor Kurdish fighters and Sunni Arab, Nabil Elaraby, Secretary-General of the Arab League, called the Turkish initiative of “clear response”. In an interview with the newspaper El Youm Al Sabe, it stated that if the Arab League could take direct action against Turkey, it gave itself the right to publish a statement in which it condemned Ankara for violating national sovereignty of Iraq. Mr. Elaraby also warned Turkey, stressing that if she continued to work on the territory of Iraq without the approval of authorities in Baghdad, while the Arab League would have no choice but to appeal the UN Security Council to address the issue. It is sending some 130 Turkish soldiers, equipped with blinds and heavy artillery in areas of northern Iraq controlled by Kurdish Peshmerga that sparked this new crisis between Ankara and its neighbors.

The Islamist Turkish authorities attempted to ease tensions by stating that the deployment was part of the framework of a routine training exercise to assist Kurdish forces in their offensive against Daech and in their efforts to take control of Mosul, whose fate is another contentious issue between the Baghdad government and the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan. But the Iraqi authorities rejected the arguments of Ankara, denouncing a “serious violation of the sovereignty” of Iraq.

Against the backdrop of growing tensions, Baghdad Sunday, January 31 threatened to bring the matter before the Security Council of the United Nations if Turkey did not withdraw its forces within 48 hours. “Iraq has the right to use all available options, including an appeal to the UN Security Council if these forces are not withdrawn within 48 hours,” said Iraqi Prime Minister al-Haider Abadi, whose ultimatum comes as laboriously begin at Geneva talks on Syria, in the absence of significant components of the Syrian opposition, like the Kurds, yet direct allies of the West in its attacks against Daech, but dedicated to public obloquy by Turkey because of their links with the PKK.

The Iraqi defense minister Khaled al-Obeidi, echoing the Prime Minister said for his part that Turkey had to consult the Iraqi government, whatever may be the reasons for its action and even though it would target jihadist forces in the region. “No matter how many soldiers entering Iraq, they will be repulsed. It was possible to provide a kind of coordination that would have avoided the current crisis between the two countries, “added al-Obeidi.