President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrives today on a visit to Iraq, Turkish media reports. He will visit Baghdad, after which he will go to Erbil, the capital of the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region, BTA summarizes.
This is Erdogan's first visit to Iraq in 11 years.
The Turkish head of state will meet with his Iraqi counterpart, Abdel Latif Rashid, and with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. A number of bilateral agreements and memorandums are expected to be signed between Turkey and Iraq, after which Erdogan and Sudani will hold a joint press conference, Anadolu Agency informs.
During the visit, agreements will be signed to fight terrorism, as well as to strengthen bilateral cooperation. Cooperation in the oil and gas sector and transportation of oil and gas, economic development and issues related to water resources will be discussed.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's trip to Iraq after more than a decade is expected to boost bilateral relations and give a boost to a huge infrastructure project planned as a link between Asia and Europe, pro-government Turkish newspaper Sabah reported.
p>Iraq is Turkey's key trade ally in the region, although relations have been strained by what Ankara considers to be insufficient cooperation from Baghdad in the fight against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), as well as a dispute over oil exports, the publication noted.
The focus of Erdoğan's visit to Iraq will be the project called “The Path of Development” worth 17 billion dollars, which should connect the Persian Gulf with Europe through Turkey, informs “Sabah“.
Turkey's Trade Minister Yomer Bolat told Anadolu Agency that the project aims to facilitate trade, customs and visa procedures for transport between the Gulf countries and Europe. The project is planned to be completed by 2029-2030.
Turkey's goal is for exports to Iraq to reach $15 billion in the near future and $20 billion in 2030, Bolat said.
Bilateral trade between Turkey and Iraq reached $24.2 billion in 2022 and $19.9 billion in 2023. Exports to Iraq decreased by 7.2 percent year-on-year in 2023 to 12 .8 billion dollars, and imports from Iraq decreased by 31.1 percent to 7.2 billion dollars during the same period, he pointed out.
Erdogan's visit to Iraq is expected to have a positive impact on the dispute over oil exports from Iraqi Kurdistan, Sabah said.
The Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which once transported about 0.5 percent of the world's oil supply, has been idle since March 2023, when Ankara was forced to halt oil shipments following an arbitration ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce. indicates “Sabah“.