“We want everybody to know that very well. Turkey does not consist of only the Justice and Development Party [the ruling AKP], there is also a strong social democratic base in Turkey. We, as all political parties, will protect the interests of Turkey altogether. Together, we will make effort for Turkey’s interests. We are opening one of these channels,” Kılıçdaroğlu said at the airport ahead of his departure yesterday.
“Our aim is this: Turkey should be a really strong, active state in its region, it should not be isolated, Turkey’s interests are very important. In terms of the stability in the region, Turkey is important too, Iraq is also important, Egypt is also important. We want to announce peace, friendship and neighborliness everywhere. We should not forget that foreign policy is built on the common interest of the countries,” Kılıçdaroğlu said, noting that his party’s Iraq policy was based on mutual respect without interference in internal affairs and was based on the principle of active cooperation.
Earlier this week, Erdoğan hinted at his disturbance with the CHP’s visit to Baghdad: “[Kılıçdaroğlu] can go and make his visit; I have nothing to say on this. It seems the Iraqi prime minister found [Kılıçdaroğlu] as a counterpart.”
Turkey and Iraq are experiencing a rough patch in ties over the former’s intention to deepen its energy ties with the Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) amid constitutional problems between the central and regional government.
“Iraq is also an important country for Turkey in commercial and economic terms. Helping to solve the problems of our businessmen working there and providing them with new opportunities are among the prior aims of our visit. We believe that the stronger our economic and commercial relations are, the stronger the two countries will be. We want to strengthen our bilateral relationship by bringing it into a healthier position in our Iraq visit. We want to contribute to peace and stability in the region. Furthermore, we will share with our counterparts the steps we will take in the government of the Republican People’s Party in line with democracy, freedoms, human rights and peace. I want this important visit to bring about positive results for Turkey and Iraq,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.
