Turkey Calls on UN to be More Active in Iraq

During the meeting with Ghazi, Turkish officials expressed their hope for a quick normalization of the situation in Iraq, according to sources close to the meetings. Turkish officials also underlined
the importance of the role of the UN within this normalization process, and called on the organization to play a more active role in Iraq.

Ghazi said that he had had an intensive briefing from Turkish officials about the policies and concerns of Ankara on Kirkuk, after concluding his meeting at the Foreign Ministry. “We hope that all interested parties will resolve the issue in a peaceful way,” he said.

He added that the different Iraqi groups also discussed the Kirkuk issue during their negotiations to establish a new government and went on to say that there are “some optimistic signs” for a solution to this problem.

Ghazi also said that he expected the establishment of the new Iraqi government by the end of the week. “The Iraqi national assembly will convene on Sunday," he said. "I hope that during the meeting it will be possible to assign some ministries.”

He added that the democratic process was something “new for Iraqi people,” and said that any delay on the formation of a new government should be considered as normal. “It’s worth waiting a little to have a stable and elected government,” he added.

The UN representative also underlined that Turkey had an important role to play in Iraq as a neighboring country. He said that the Istanbul meeting of Iraq’s neighboring countries, scheduled for the middle of this month, would be very important due to its timing. “It will be the first meeting of Iraq’s neighbors after the establishment of the country’s new government,” he said.