Iraqi–Kurdish conflict

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has emphasized the "historical significance" of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's recent diplomatic mission to Iraq, particularly in the context of combating terrorism.

After a recent visit to the Iraqi capital Baghdad, National Intelligence Organization (MİT) chief İbrahim Kalın has continued his engagements in the Kurdish regional government capital of Erbil, where discussions centered on bilateral relations and counterterrorism efforts.

Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is scheduled to embark on a diplomatic mission this week, heading to Baghdad and Erbil, as reported by the Iraqi media.

Türkiye has closed its airspace for the aircraft, which land/take-off at Iraq's Sulaymaniyah International Airport, as of April 3 upon the intensification of PKK activities in the region, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Tanju Bilgiç said.

Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has said he met with senior Iraqi and Iraqi-Kurdish officials to discuss Turkey's ongoing fight against the PKK terrorist organization, which had been using the Iraqi territories since the late 1980s.

Erbil International Airport in northern Iraq was hit by an explosives-laden drone, the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) said on April 14.

The military section of the airport where U.S.-led international coalition forces are deployed was targeted in the attack, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry on March 10 reacted to a stamp planned to be issued by the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) on the occasion of the visit of the spiritual leader of the Catholics, Pope Francis, to Iraq.

Turkey and Iraq are planning to establish a new mechanism to provide an exchange of information for the struggle against the PKK, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Jan. 20.

At least four children in northern Iraq were injured in a mortar attack on March 17, Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

The attack was carried out by the ISIL according to Mustafa Hassan, the police chief in Tuz Khurmatu district.

Turkey does not have any problems with Kurds in Syria and it only aims to fight a PKK-affiliated terror group there, said president of Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government (KRG).