BAGHDAD: Tensions between Turkey and Iraq continued to escalate Wednesday as Iraq鈥檚 prime minister rejected Turkish claims that their forces must be included in an operation to retake the militant-held city of Mosul.
鈥淲e will liberate our land through the determination of our men and not by video calls,鈥� Haider Al-Abadi said on his Twitter account, mocking the Turkish president鈥檚 nationally broadcast video call to a TV journalist amid a failed coup attempt in July.
On Tuesday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkish forces cannot be excluded from the long-awaited operation to retake Mosul, telling Iraq鈥檚 Al-Abadi to 鈥渒now his place.鈥�
Turkey-Iraq relations became strained after Ankara sent troops late last year to the region of Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, to train anti-Daesh fighters there 鈥� a move Baghdad has since labeled a 鈥渂latant violation鈥� of its sovereignty. Iraq has demanded a Turkish withdrawal, but Ankara has repeatedly ignored the call.
鈥淵ou are not my interlocutor, you are not at my level, you are not my equivalent, you are not of the same quality as me,鈥� Erdogan said Tuesday, addressing Al-Abadi in a speech delivered in Istanbul. 鈥淵our screaming and shouting in Iraq is of no importance to us. You should know that we will go our own way.鈥�
Iraq鈥檚 Shiite militias 鈥� one of the many groups expected to take part in the fight to retake Mosul 鈥� have also called for an immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops.
鈥淲e did not and will not allow the Turkish forces to violate Iraq鈥檚 sovereignty,鈥� said Hadi Al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the most prominent Shiite militia groups.
鈥淲e affirm, the Turks must withdraw their forces and if they insist on staying, they have no one to blame but themselves. The arrogance and vanity that we hear today in Erdogan鈥檚 language, he will not only regret it but he will actually see it.鈥�
The operation to retake Mosul is expected to be the most complex yet for Iraqi forces backed by US-led coalition air-power. Iraq鈥檚 military is still rebuilding after nearly a third of its forces disintegrated when Mosul first fell to IS more than two years ago.