Turkish PM Davutoğlu visits Iraq as ties thaw

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu met his Iraqi counterpart Haidar al-Abadi in Baghdad Nov. 20, as long-strained ties between the two countries improve.

Davutoğlu was given an official welcome at the main palace in the heavily fortified Green Zone, after which he held talks with Abadi, the Iraqi premier's office said, without providing further details.

His visit follows a trip to Turkey by Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari earlier this month that was aimed at patching up the chilly ties between the two neighbours.

Ankara's decision to aid Iraq's Kurdish region independently export oil has angered Baghdad, which considers it illegal.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, now Turkey's president, repeatedly clashed with Abadi's predecessor, Nuri al-Maliki.

The two countries have also disagreed over the protracted Syrian civil war. Davutoğlu's visit is the first by a Turkish prime minister to Iraq in four years.