Turkey and Iran in talks on post-election Iraq
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (L) met with top Iranian officials in Tehran, including his Iranian counterpart, Manouchehr Mottaki.
Turkey and Iran, two major powerhouses in the region with significant clout over Iraqi domestic politics, have been trying to reconcile their differences to bolster post-election Iraqi unity, diplomatic sources have told Today’s Zaman. It may very well have been overshadowed by Iran’s nuclear program, which has topped the international agenda in recent weeks, but the question of what will happen in Iraq after the general elections was the second most important issue on the Turkish foreign minister’s to-do list when he visited Tehran on Tuesday to have a series of talks with the Iranian leadership, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
“Iraq was the second most important item in our conversations with the Iranian leadership,” Ahmet Davutoğlu told Today’s Zaman after wrapping up his talks with Iranian officials.
In the joint press conference with his counterpart, Manouchehr Mottaki, on Tuesday, Davutoglu said, “The most important development in the region has to do with the elections in Iraq, the post-election status and efforts to form a government in Iraq.”
