WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — "They have trained a number of local Nineveh fighters, and we are prepared to incorporate those fighters into the [Mosul] operation under the Iraqi command," McGurk told reporters on Friday.
On Thursday, Iraq requested an emergency UN Security Council meeting to discuss the presence of Turkish troops in Bashiqa, located about 19 miles northeast of Mosul.
The parliament in Baghdad adopted a resolution on Tuesday protesting Ankara’s military presence and demanding Iraqi authorities take legal and diplomatic measures. Ankara has condemned the resolution.
Tensions between the two countries increased last week after Turkish parliament extended a mandate for Turkish troops to continue counter-terror operations in Iraq and Syria for 13 months.
