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Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met Iraqi Prime Minister Ali ez-Zeydi on the sidelines of the 52nd Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Baghdad, saying Zeydi has a serious vision for carrying relations with Turkey forward and that its positive and constructive effect is visible in Iraq's policies.

Speaking to reporters after his talks in the Iraqi capital, Fidan said Turkey handed the OIC council's rotating presidency to Iraq today after holding it for one and a half years. He said the meetings addressed urgent issues facing the Islamic world, above all Palestine, and reviewed bilateral ties with Iraqi officials in trade, energy and security.

Turkey hands OIC chairmanship to Iraq

Fidan said Turkey spent a long but productive day in Baghdad, meeting Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty this morning before the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers session began. Turkey, which had chaired the council for one and a half years, transferred the presidency to Iraq today.

"At the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, very important matters closely concerning the Islamic world, above all the question of Palestine, were examined and discussed in depth," Fidan said. He added that the meetings and talks were aimed at resolving the shared problems of the Islamic world.

Talks with Iraq's president and prime minister

Fidan said he conveyed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's greetings to Iraqi President Nizar Amedi and congratulated Amedi on the new post. "It was our first face-to-face meeting after they took up their new duties. He is a statesman we knew before. Mr. Nizar is a figure who served alongside previous presidents," Fidan said.

Speaking about the meeting with Prime Minister Zeydi, Fidan said: "Mr. Zeydi really has a very serious vision for carrying relations with Turkey forward. We also see the positive and constructive effect of this vision in Iraq's policies. We openly saw that he has a very serious will to identify the problems in Iraq and to take practical steps as a result of that assessment." Fidan said they discussed how President Erdoğan and Turkey support such constructive policies, and how Turkey-Iraq relations could be carried to a horizon unprecedented in history through constructive wills.

Fidan said they also discussed how Turkey would play every constructive role at its disposal to remove hardships stemming from recent history that affect Iraqi society in particular. With Zeydi, Fidan said they had the opportunity to discuss energy, connectivity, the Development Road Project, security and defense cooperation, counterterrorism and Sinjar at length. "Hopefully, other problems in the region will also be resolved in a short time through dialogue and through peace, so that the environment in which Iraq breathes is eased and the region evolves into a more peaceful atmosphere," Fidan said.

Regional and security matters reviewed

Fidan said he also met Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and discussed the general political situation and regional topics. In Baghdad, Fidan met Popular Mobilization Commission Chairman Falih al-Fayyad, with whom he has maintained a relationship since the years he served at the National Intelligence Organization (MİT). "We had the opportunity to evaluate many issues, particularly the current situation of the Popular Mobilization Commission, regional conditions, the steps taken toward disarming certain armed groups in Iraq and the point reached, Turkey-Iraq relations and the security perspective," Fidan said.

In his meeting with Heybet Halbusi, Speaker of Iraq's Council of Representatives, Fidan conveyed President Erdoğan's greetings and said they reviewed many topics, above all the issues on the Iraqi parliament's agenda and Turkey-Iraq relations. In talks with Iraq's National Security Adviser Kasım Abbudi, Fidan said the security dimension of relations between the two countries and its reflections on regional relations and security policies would be on the agenda.

Meeting with Iraqi State Minister Ağaoğlu

Fidan said he also met Mehmet Seman Ağaoğlu, Iraqi State Minister and chairman of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, and congratulated him on his new post as state minister. "It was important that a minister emerged from the Front," Fidan said, adding that he conveyed President Erdoğan's thanks to Prime Minister Zeydi and Speaker Halbusi for that reason.

Fidan said Turkey has followed the situation of the Iraqi Turkmen Front and the problems of the Turkmen people for years. "Solving these problems is not independent from solving Iraq's general problems and other problems. They need to be managed by linking them to each other. We discussed what can be done on these matters," he said, describing the Turkmen community as always a very constructive part of Iraq's overall structure, never engaged in destructive or divisive activity.

"They are loyal citizens of Iraq. They are also very conscious about preserving their own identity. That is what we want anyway. Turkey and Iraq are brothers, extensions of each other in geography, culture and history. We need to transform this into a more institutional, better-functioning structural ground in modern times that works for everyone's benefit. This is the only thing we are actually trying to do as responsible people," Fidan said.

Message of solidarity at the OIC meeting

In a post on NSosyal, Fidan recalled that he visited Baghdad to attend the 52nd OIC Council of Foreign Ministers as term president. "In our speech at the OIC meeting, we emphasized the need to act in solidarity in the face of global and regional problems, and the importance of acting jointly on all matters concerning the Islamic geography, above all Palestine," he said.

Fidan said he met Iraqi President Nizar Amedi, Prime Minister Ali ez-Zeydi, Speaker Heybet Halbusi, Head of the Supreme Judicial Council Faik Zeydan, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, Popular Mobilization Commission Chairman Falih al-Fayyad, National Security Adviser Kasım Abbudi, and Mehmet Seman Ağaoğlu, chairman of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, state minister and Kirkuk governor. He said the talks covered bilateral relations in all their dimensions and addressed steps to deepen cooperation between Turkey and Iraq in areas such as trade, energy and security, and he thanked all Iraqi officials for their hospitality.

Fidan also recalled meeting Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arakchi. "We assessed the point reached by efforts to resolve the ongoing conflicts in the region. As Turkey, we will continue with determination to increase solidarity in the Islamic world, to defend the rights of the oppressed and to make constructive contributions to the peace and prosperity of our region," Fidan said.

Key takeaways

• Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan handed the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers chairmanship to Iraq today after Turkey's one-and-a-half-year term.
• Fidan said Prime Minister Ali ez-Zeydi has a serious vision for advancing Turkey-Iraq relations and a strong will to take practical steps on Iraq's problems.
• Talks covered energy, connectivity, the Development Road Project, security and defense cooperation, counterterrorism and Sinjar.
• Fidan met eight Iraqi officials as well as the Egyptian and Iranian foreign ministers during the Baghdad visit.