Iraq summons Turkish ambassador

Iraq, locked in a public row with neighbouring Turkey, has summoned Ankara’s ambassador in Baghdad to protest at critical remarks by Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan, the foreign ministry said on Monday. The envoy, Younis Demerer, heard the Iraqi complaint on Sunday after several days of charge and counter-charge. Erdogan accused his Iraqi counterpart Nuri Al Maliki of stoking conflict between various section of the society and Kurds through ‘self-centred’ behaviour. Maliki fired back that Turkey was becoming a ‘hostile state’ with a sectarian agenda, saying it was meddling in Iraqi affairs and trying to establish regional “hegemony”. Analysts say Turkey is worried that growing tensions in Iraq and violence in their mutual neighbour Syria may lead to a wider conflict in the region. Erdogan’s government has also recently forged close ties with Masoud Barzani, president of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, which is embroiled in a row with the Baghdad government over claims to the city of Kirkuk and the region’s oil. “Foreign ministry undersecretary Labeed Abbawi acquainted the Turkish ambassador with the Iraqi government’s intense protest against the recent statements,” the Iraqi foreign ministry said on its website. “Undersecretary Abbawi expressed hope that the Turkish government will stop giving statements that affect Iraq’s sovereignty and internal affairs.” Barzani said he opposes the sale of F-16 warplanes to Iraq while Maliki is premier, as he fears they would be used against the region. Barzani also said that he thinks that oil giant ExxonMobil, which has signed an oil exploration deal with Kurdistan against Baghdad’s wishes, could provide significant protection for the region. “The F-16 must not reach the hand of this man,” Barzani told reporters at his residence near the Kurdistan region’s capital Arbil on Sunday, referring to Maliki. “We must either prevent him from having these weapons, or if he has them, he should not stay in his position,” Barzani said. Barzani alleged that Maliki had discussed using F-16s against Kurdistan during a meeting with military officers. “During a military me-eting, they talked about pr-oblems between Baghdad and Arbil,” Barzani said. “They told him, ‘Sir, just give us the authority, and we would kick them out of Arbil,’” Barzani said. “And (Maliki) answered: ‘Wait until the arrival of the F-16.’” The US has agreed to sell 36 F-16 jets to Baghdad in a multi-billion-dollar deal aimed at increasing the capabilities of Iraq’s fledgling air force. “When I went to the US, they (Exxon) wanted to see me and I met the president of the company and other people and they said they are committed to (the contract) they signed with the Kurdistan region,” Barzani said, referring to a visit to the US this month. “If ExxonMobil came, it would be equal to 10 American military divisions,” he said adding that “they will defend the area if their interests are there.”