Ankara, Jan 23: Turkey, the United States and Iraq
will set up a joint centre in northern Iraq to curb Turkish
Kurd rebels taking refuge in the region, Iraqi Foreign
Minister Hoshyar Zebari said here on Friday.
"The plan is to set up a joint command of representatives
from the three parties in Arbil," Zebari, on a three-day visit
to Turkey, told reporters after talks with Turkish counterpart
Ali Babacan.
It would be "a key centre to work together to... ensure
border security and prevent cross-border attacks on Turkey,"
he said.
The separatist Kurdistan Workers` Party (PKK) has long
taken refuge in mountainous bases in northern Iraq, using the
region as a springboard for attacks on Turkish targets across
the border.
Zebari called the PKK a "poisonous element" in bilateral
ties, stressing that both the Baghdad government and the
Kurdish administration of northern Iraq were determined to
cooperate with Turkey to enact measures to tackle the
problem.
"There will be a combination of political, economic,
military and intelligence measures to remove this poisonous
element in our relations," he said.
The centre in Arbil, he said, will be part of recently
inaugurated trilateral consultations between Turkey, the
United States and Iraq to outline measures to curb the PKK,
listed as a terrorist group by Ankara and much of the
international community.
It would serve as "a field centre to coordinate all
activities on the ground," he said.
Bureau Report
