The military operation in the neighboring country isn’t about grabbing land, President Erdogan assures
Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan stated that Ankara had sent troops into Kurdish territories in northern Iraq to fight terrorist attacks and protect its borders. It was not seeking new territories.
Operation Claw-Lock began late on Sunday and had the goal of being to “rid Iraqi lands of terrorists and guarantee the security of our borders,”Erdogan made these remarks during Wednesday’s meeting of the ruling AK Party’s parliamentary committee.
The northern Iraqi regions of Metina, Zap, and Avasin-Basyan, where the operation is unfolding, have been used by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to prepare attacks against Turkey, he said.
Ankara regards the PKK as a terrorist organisation. They have been fighting Turkish forces for many decades.
“Turkey does not claim any territories,” the president pointed out, adding that it was instead “making every effort to contribute to the strengthening of their territorial integrity and political unity so that our neighbors can live in security and peace.”
“We will continue to do so. We act with the same aim in Syria as in Iraq,” Erdogan insisted.
The operation of Ankara was criticized by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry on Tuesday “a violation of its sovereignty and the sanctity of the country” that didn’t make Turkey look like a good neighbor. Iraq shouldn’t be “an arena for conflicts and settling scores for other external parties,”According to the ministry.
The Turkish Defense Ministry stated earlier that an incursion was necessary to prevent a major attack on Turkish territory, which was being planned by Kurdish forces.
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Turkey has released video of the Iraqi invasion (VIDEO).
This operation follows Claw-Tiger’s and Claw-Eagle operations, both of which Ankara staged in north Iraq in 2020.
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