The Iraqi Foreign Ministry called in the Turkish ambassador to Baghdad on Wednesday after Turkey's foreign minister said Iraq would soon face pressure to take stronger action against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Baghdad criticised these comments as interference in its internal affairs.
The ministry said it hosted Turkish Ambassador Anil Bora İnan on 11 February, following remarks by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan during a televised interview on CNN Türk two days earlier.
At the meeting, Iraq's Undersecretary for Bilateral Relations, Ambassador Mohammed Hussein Bahr al-Uloom, told the ambassador that Baghdad was "dissatisfied" with the statements, saying they hurt relations and broke diplomatic protocols.
He stressed that Iraq is a sovereign country with its own democracy and should not be compared to countries with different systems. Bahr al-Uloom said that issues in Sinjar and other regions are Iraq's internal affairs and should be handled in accordance with its own priorities. He firmly rejected outside efforts to force political or military solutions.
For his part, the Turkish Ambassador clarified that the Foreign Minister's statements were inaccurately understood due to an incorrect translation. He explained that the Minister's remarks concerned members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) present in Iraq and were not related to Iraq's internal affairs or its citizens.
Ankara responds
In a written statement issued later on 11 February, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli said that Fidan's remarks had been "distorted by some media outlets in Iraq."
The statement affirmed Ankara's intention to strengthen cooperation with Iraq in areas including security and counterterrorism.
Ankara explained that Fidan's comments were meant to point out what Turkey sees as a threat to Iraq's territorial integrity from the PKK, which it says is based in places like Sinjar, Makhmur, and Qandil.
The statement said Fidan stressed Turkey's commitment to removing the PKK from Iraqi territory, as it has tried to do in Syria, and called for more cooperation with Baghdad.
Ankara rejected allegations of interference and reiterated its support for Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
What did Fidan say?
In a live interview on CNN Türk, Fidan said that after events in Syria, attention would turn to Iraq when it comes to the PKK.
"There is also an Iraq dimension to this issue," he said. "After the Syrian side is resolved, there is the Iraq side. Hopefully, Iraq will draw lessons from what has happened here and make wiser decisions so that the transition there will be easier."
The Turkish minister stated that Baghdad would need to show political resolve on the PKK, especially in Sinjar, and suggested Iraq would eventually adopt a policy banning armed groups from operating within its borders.
"Our argument has always been this: the PKK is an organisation established against Turkey, but it doesn't occupy or control any territory within Turkey. However, in Iraq, it occupies vast swathes of land," Fidan said. "The problem has become more your problem than mine. What kind of sovereign state allows an armed organisation to exist on its territory in this way?"
He added that Iraq has the capacity to address the PKK and described a potential joint ground and air operation as "a very simple military operation," noting that Sinjar is surrounded by the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF).
In response, Ambassador İnan told Iraqi officials that Fidan's remarks had been misunderstood due to translation errors. He stressed that the comments were only about PKK elements in Iraq, not about Iraq's political system or its people.
Some analysts argue that Baghdad's response was insufficient and overly cautious.
Harry Istepanian, energy and water expert and a senior fellow with the Iraq Energy Institute, told The New Arab that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan's remarks went beyond legitimate security concerns and amounted to public interference in Iraq's sovereignty, particularly by questioning Iraq's statehood and outlining a potential joint military operation in Sinjar.
He dismissed Ankara's claim that the controversy stemmed from mistranslation as unconvincing, noting that Fidan's comments were consistent across multiple accounts and clearly conveyed policy messaging.
Istepanian suggested that Iraq's decision to treat the issue as a translation problem appears to be a diplomatic off-ramp, allowing Baghdad to formally protest while avoiding a deeper confrontation with Turkey, a key partner in trade, water, and security matters.
Bilateral relations
Iraq and Turkey have strong economic ties, with Ankara among Baghdad's main trading partners. Turkish companies play an important role in Iraq's infrastructure and energy sectors. Trade between the two countries is among the highest in the region.
Despite these economic ties, security tensions continue, especially as Turkey keeps up its military campaign against the PKK in northern Iraq. Ankara often carries out cross-border strikes against PKK fighters, whom it calls a terrorist group, a label also used by the European Union and the United States.
Since ISIS was defeated, Sinjar has remained a volatile area with federal forces, Yazidi militias, and Shia armed groups operating there. After ISIS overran the town in August 2014 and carried out mass killings and enslavement of the Yazidi community, local fighters formed the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS) with support from the PKK to protect the population.
Although the PKK has since announced its withdrawal from Sinjar, and the YBS has been formally incorporated into Iraq's Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), Ankara maintains that PKK elements continue to operate in Sinjar and the nearby Makhmour area.