Iraq turmoil hindering pursuit of external issues, says FM
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The current turmoil grasping Iraq's political climate is preventing the country from pursuing ongoing issues it has with other countries, Iraq's foreign minister told Rudaw Thursday on the sidelines the UN summit in New York, referring to a deadly artillery shelling in Duhok province in July attributed to Turkey.
Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said Iraq had submitted a lawsuit against Turkey for the attack, but internal political disputes in the country hindered investigations required for the legitimacy of the compliant.
"Because our internal problems are a lot... you find that the government and political parties are busy with internal issues. If you are not strong internally, you cannot easily defend your cause when it comes to external issues," Hussein told Rudaw's Majeed Gly on the sidelines of the 77th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
Hussein blamed Turkey for never formally stepping up and apologizing for carrying out the attack.
"Even regarding the joint investigation, they only talked about it in the media and did not send an official note to request it. I believe Turkey looks down at Iraq's internal situation and sees itself as powerful and therefore did not seek a solution for this problem," the top Iraqi diplomat explained, saying his country has complete proof for Ankara's involvement in the shelling.
A deadly artillery shelling struck a tourist resort in Duhok's Zakho district on July 20, killing nine Iraqis and injuring over 30 others. The attack was widely attributed Turkey by Erbil and Baghdad but Ankara has denied involvement, blaming the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) instead.
Protests were held in several Iraqi provinces the day following the attack, with demonstrators calling for the expulsion of the Turkish ambassador to Iraq and the reduction of diplomatic ties with Turkey.
Ahmed al-Sahaf, spokesperson for Iraq's foreign ministry, complained to the UN in July that Turkey has "expansionist" goals regarding the attack and claimed that Turkish violations of Iraqi sovereignty since 2018 number almost 23,000.
Iran-Saudi talks
Hussein also touched on the ongoing talks between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia in Baghdad, where five rounds of talks mediated by Iraq have so far taken place.
"This process is ongoing, and until now they have met five times in Baghdad but it was on the level of security and intelligence. I met with both the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers and the discussion is that we will evolve the meetings to the level of foreign ministers," Hussein said.
In July, Hussein announced that Tehran and Riyadh had agreed to hold the first public meeting in years at the level of foreign ministers in Baghdad. Both rivaling countries have thorny relations.
However, the top diplomat said that additional details for the upcoming meeting are unavailable as details and discussions for the meetings are still undisclosed.
The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran severed ties in 2016 when Iranian protestors attacked the Saudi diplomatic mission in retaliation for the kingdom's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, to which Riyadh responded by cutting ties with Tehran. Since then, both countries have been arch enemies in the region, waging a proxy war in conflict areas like Yemen.
The two rivals held the first round of reconciliation talks in April of last year in Baghdad.
Iran late last month said that "the process of negotiations has been positive and we have taken very good steps forward" regarding talks with Saudi Arabia.
Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said Iraq had submitted a lawsuit against Turkey for the attack, but internal political disputes in the country hindered investigations required for the legitimacy of the compliant.
"Because our internal problems are a lot... you find that the government and political parties are busy with internal issues. If you are not strong internally, you cannot easily defend your cause when it comes to external issues," Hussein told Rudaw's Majeed Gly on the sidelines of the 77th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
Hussein blamed Turkey for never formally stepping up and apologizing for carrying out the attack.
"Even regarding the joint investigation, they only talked about it in the media and did not send an official note to request it. I believe Turkey looks down at Iraq's internal situation and sees itself as powerful and therefore did not seek a solution for this problem," the top Iraqi diplomat explained, saying his country has complete proof for Ankara's involvement in the shelling.
A deadly artillery shelling struck a tourist resort in Duhok's Zakho district on July 20, killing nine Iraqis and injuring over 30 others. The attack was widely attributed Turkey by Erbil and Baghdad but Ankara has denied involvement, blaming the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) instead.
Protests were held in several Iraqi provinces the day following the attack, with demonstrators calling for the expulsion of the Turkish ambassador to Iraq and the reduction of diplomatic ties with Turkey.
Ahmed al-Sahaf, spokesperson for Iraq's foreign ministry, complained to the UN in July that Turkey has "expansionist" goals regarding the attack and claimed that Turkish violations of Iraqi sovereignty since 2018 number almost 23,000.
Iran-Saudi talks
Hussein also touched on the ongoing talks between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia in Baghdad, where five rounds of talks mediated by Iraq have so far taken place.
"This process is ongoing, and until now they have met five times in Baghdad but it was on the level of security and intelligence. I met with both the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers and the discussion is that we will evolve the meetings to the level of foreign ministers," Hussein said.
In July, Hussein announced that Tehran and Riyadh had agreed to hold the first public meeting in years at the level of foreign ministers in Baghdad. Both rivaling countries have thorny relations.
However, the top diplomat said that additional details for the upcoming meeting are unavailable as details and discussions for the meetings are still undisclosed.
The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran severed ties in 2016 when Iranian protestors attacked the Saudi diplomatic mission in retaliation for the kingdom's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, to which Riyadh responded by cutting ties with Tehran. Since then, both countries have been arch enemies in the region, waging a proxy war in conflict areas like Yemen.
The two rivals held the first round of reconciliation talks in April of last year in Baghdad.
Iran late last month said that "the process of negotiations has been positive and we have taken very good steps forward" regarding talks with Saudi Arabia.