Turkish PM vows to strengthen ties with Iraq

By Sinan Uslu and Duygu Yener

ANKARA

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has said his upcoming visit to Iraq on Saturday will further strengthen ties between Iraq and Turkey.

In remarks made to the media following Friday prayers in Ankara, Yildirim said: "We want to improve and strengthen our relations with our neighbors as part of our political principle to 'increase the number of our friends and decrease the number of our foes'."

The premier said economic losses suffered in previous years by both sides must be compensated through enhanced bilateral cooperation.

"We will also discuss how to prevent attacks by the PKK terrorist organization from Iraq's territory to Turkey," Yildirim said. "We will also discuss the fight against Daesh," he added.

Turkey has suffered several terrorist attacks over the last month. On Dec. 10, a twin bomb attack in Istanbul by the PKK terrorist group left 46 people -- mostly police officers – martyred.

A week later, a suicide car bomb attack by the PKK hit a public bus in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri, martyring 14 soldiers.

On Jan. 1, an armed attack on a nightclub in Istanbul during the New Year celebrations martyred 39 people.

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and EU -- resumed its armed campaign in July 2015 and since then has been responsible for the deaths of around 1,100 security personnel and civilians, including women and children.