Turkey Announces Troop Withdrawal From Northern Iraq

Turkish foreign ministry said in the statement that “Turkey, in recognition of the Iraqi concerns, is continuing to move military forces from Nineveh province”.

“Taking into account the sensitivities on the Iraqi side…”

This had brought up to the total number of Turkish troops stationed in Mosul up to 1200, as per to the Daily Sabah. Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari asked the body to adopt a resolution demanding Turkey withdraw its troops immediately.

Baghdad considers the Turkish troops an illegal incursion and has demanded their immediate withdrawal at a U.N. Security Council meeting.

Turkey said it had deployed troops and tanks to a military camp in northern Iraq earlier this month to protect Turkish trainers working with anti-Islamic State groups. Turkish officials said the ISIL attack justifies the deployment of Turkish troops to the base in the town of Bashiqa.

Turkey will continue to coordinate with the Iraqi government its military contributions to the fight against the IS.

US president appealed to Turkish counterpart to continue withdrawal to reduce tensions with Baghdad.

The two presidents also exchanged their views about ongoing talks to launch a political transition process in Syria, expected to start on January 1, 2016, after three rounds of talks in Vienna and NY.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Council on Friday he hoped that Iraqi and Turkish governments will exercise restraint and intensify their bilateral discussions to diffuse tensions. “The reason the USA supports this partnership is because as long as Turkey and Kurds have an affinity, the influence of Iran and of the pro-Iranian lobby in Baghdad will be kept at bay”. It did not say how many troops would be moved or where to.

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama called on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday to de-escalate the situation, according to the White House.