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Turkey pressures Iraq PM on Kurds Iraq vows to oust Kurdish rebels
(about 5 hours later)
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki is in Turkey for talks on preventing raids into Turkish territory by Kurdish separatists based in northern Iraq. Turkey and Iraq have agreed to "expend all efforts" to oust a Kurdish separatist group from northern Iraq.
Ankara has warned the Iraqi government either to crack down on Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) bases or face a possible incursion by Turkish troops. Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Iraqi counterpart, Nouri Maliki, signed a memorandum of understanding on security issues after talks in Ankara.
Correspondents in Baghdad say it is not known what assurances Mr Maliki will give the Turkish authorities. Ankara had warned Iraq to crack down on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) within its borders or face a possible incursion by Turkish troops.
Turkey has boosted troop levels along the Iraqi border in recent months. Around 80 Turkish soldiers have died in skirmishes with the PKK this year.
The PKK has been labelled as a terrorist organisation by both the US and the EU. The Turkish military has deployed tens of thousands of troops along its southern border in recent months and has been calling for cross-border operations to target the 4,000 PKK activists it believes are in northern Iraq.
The PKK aims to create a Kurdish state, part of which would be in south-east Turkey. The PKK, which has been fighting for an ethnic homeland since 1984, has been labelled a terrorist organisation by both the US and the EU.
The Turkish authorities say the rebels key bases are in northern Iraq. 'Mutual understanding'
For decades the group has targeted Turkish security forces and has been blamed for attacks on foreign tourists. Speaking at the end of talks in the Turkish capital, Mr Erdogan said Turkey and Iraq had agreed to do everything possible to stop the PKK.
Eighty Turkish soldiers have died in skirmishes this year. "We have reached an agreement to expend all efforts to end the presence of the Kurdistan Workers Party or PKK in Iraq," he told a news conference.
Economic benefits There was agreement to unite our joint efforts to find a solution that will end, eliminate, and cancel [the PKK's] presence on Iraqi territory through shared action by both parties Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki
The trip comes just two weeks after the Turkish general election - the campaign for which was punctuated by repeated calls from the Turkish military to be allowed to conduct cross-border raids on PKK bases. Mr Erdogan said Turkey and Iraq had agreed to speed up work to finalise a counter-terrorism agreement.
Re-elected for a second five-year term, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan now has the opportunity to raise Ankara's concerns directly with his Iraqi counterpart. Mr Maliki said Iraq understood Turkey's concerns about PKK attacks, but that he was unable to make any more definite commitment to removing the group from its bases.
Mr Erdogan will be hoping to hear reassurances that Baghdad is serious about preventing PKK infiltration across the border, says the BBC's Dan O'Byrne in Istanbul. "We found a mutual understanding with the Turkish side about the need to co-operate to confront the activities of all terrorist organisations in Iraq, including the PKK," he said.
Before his visit, Mr Maliki said he wanted to develop good relations and co-operation with Turkey, but stressed he wanted to deal with Iraq's internal affairs alone. "There was agreement to unite our joint efforts to find a solution that will end, eliminate, and cancel [the PKK's] presence on Iraqi territory through shared action by both parties."
Meanwhile, the meeting could promise economic benefits for both sides. Mr Maliki insisted the agreements signed in Ankara would be binding for the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, which has been accused of overlooking the PKK's presence.
With the poor security in Iraq deterring direct investment by Western oil companies, the Iraqi and US governments have signalled their interest in Turkish companies playing a role in bringing the country's oil and gas reserves to market. The BBC's David O'Byrne in Istanbul says that while the agreement is clearly not as far reaching as he would have liked, Mr Erdogan will be hopeful that it will be sufficient to placate both the Turkish military and nationalists.
They punctuated Turkey's recent election campaign with calls for retaliatory strikes against the PKK.
With Baghdad able to exert little influence on the Kurdish-controlled north of the country, Mr Erdogan will be well aware that his Iraqi counterpart is really not in a position to offer more, our correspondent says.