ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani and Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid separately, to discuss cooperation and bilateral relations.

The meeting “addressed the importance of unifying efforts between the countries of the region in order to support stability. In this regard, the Prime Minister stressed Iraq's readiness to coordinate with the countries of the region,” read a statement by the Iraqi PM’s media office.

Fidan, for his part, “expressed his country's desire to closely coordinate with Iraq regarding developments in the region,” the statement added.

The Turkish FM met with his Iraqi counterpart earlier on Sunday where they discussed Syria’s developments and joint efforts between Ankara and Baghdad in countering terrorism.

Fidan also met with Iraqi president Abdul Latif Rashid.

“During the meeting, bilateral relations between the two countries and ways to enhance them were discussed in a way that contributes to developing cooperation mechanisms in various fields,” wrote the media office of the president in a statement following the meeting.

“The President stressed that Iraq looks forward to establishing advanced relations with Turkey based on mutual respect, pointing out the need to implement the memoranda of understanding signed between the two countries during the Turkish President's visit to Iraq last year,” the statement added.

Turkish state media Anadolu Agency wrote in a report before the visit, that “it is expected that Fidan will reaffirm Turkey’s will to enhance their relations with Iraq on the basis of a positive agenda and under an institutionalized framework.”

Erdogan visited Iraq on April 2024 where he signed 26 memoranda and agreements in a meeting with Sudani.

The meetings come a month after the Interior Ministers of both countries met and discussed details of a security agreement between Baghdad and Ankara on countering the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The PKK is an armed group that has fought for increased Kurdish rights in Turkey for decades. The group, designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara, uses mountainous areas of the Kurdistan Region as shelter and often engages in direct armed conflict with Turkey.

The PKK has a large number of positions in the Kurdistan Region, including the Qandil headquarters. Turkey alike has military bases used to strike the group. 

In a bid to establish security amid the PKK-Turkey crossfire, the Iraqi government, in coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), has deployed federal guards along its border with Turkey.

Iraq officially in July 2024 rebranded the PKK to “Banned PKK” in all affairs of state, months after a high-level meeting between Ankara and Baghdad led the Iraqi side to criminalize the group officially.