Obama, Erdogan Discuss Need for Close Cooperation to Counter Daesh

© AFP 2023 / Yasin BulbulTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) speaks with US President Barack Obama (L) during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Turkey Leaders Summit in Antalya. (File)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) speaks with US President Barack Obama (L) during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Turkey Leaders Summit in Antalya. (File) - Sputnik International
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US President Barack Obama spoke by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and noted the need for Washington and Ankara to coordinate efforts against the Daesh group in Syria, the White House said in a press release.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Erdogan is at odds with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi over Ankara's role in US-led coalition operation in Moshul after Abadi demanded Turkish troops withdrawal from the base in the northern city of Bashiqa.

"President Obama noted the need for close coordination between the United States and Turkey to build on these successes and to apply sustained pressure on ISIL [Daesh] in Syria to reduce threats to the United States, Turkey, and elsewhere," the release stated on Wednesday.

Iraqi forces gather in the al-Shura area, south of Mosul, on October 24, 2016, during an operation to retake the main hub city from the Islamic State (IS) group jihadists - Sputnik International
Some 60 Iraqi Soldiers Killed in Mosul Offensive, 250 Wounded - CENTCOM
The White House said Obama welcomed continued discussions between Turkey and Iraq to determine the level of Turkey’s involvement in coalition operations.

Additionally, the two leaders agreed on the need to deny the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) sanctuary in northern Iraq.

On Tuesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara had not ruled out a ground operation in Iraq targeting the PKK or the Daesh.

Ankara is allied with Masoud Barzani, president of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, but considers Syrian Kurdish groups in the anti-Islamic State coalition to be extensions of the PKK, which is a designated terrorist group in Turkey.

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