Turkey has no intentions to infringe on Iraq's territorial integrity, and the recently launched anti-terrorist operation is aimed only at ensuring Turkey's border security, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday.
"Why doesn't the Iraqi side worry about PKK terrorists on its territory? We are not violating the territorial integrity of Iraq; we have no such intentions. We will ensure the security of our borders, the security of our citizens, we will fight terror," Cavusoglu told a briefing.
On April 18, Turkey initiated a cross-border anti-terrorist operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq, saying the PKK formations were planning a large-scale offensive. Ankara dispatched 42 task forces, consisting of 654 soldiers, to identify and neutralize PKK militants in the border regions. Iraqi presidential office stated that the Turkish operation undermines the country's national security.
