Iraq's Foreign Ministry said Thursday it had requested the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting to discuss presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq, seen by Baghdad as violation of the country's sovereignty.
"The Foreign Ministry has submitted a request for an emergency session for the United Nation's Security Council to discuss the Turkish violations on Iraqi territories and interference in its internal affairs," Iraq's Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Jamal said as quoted in a statement.
Jamal added that Baghdad also called on the UN Security Council to uphold its responsibilities toward Iraq and to take a decision to put an end to Turkey's "violations" of Iraq's sovereignty.
Relations between Iraq and Turkey has tensed up after the Turkish parliament last week extended a mandate allowing Turkish troops to be deployed in Iraq and Syria to combat terrorists for an additional year. On Tuesday, the Iraqi parliament adopted a resolution voicing protest against Turkish military presence in Bashiqa, located about 19 miles northeast of Mosul.
SPUTNIK/MNA