Iran, Turkey agree to boost military cooperation
Turkish Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar held separate meetings with Iranian officials, during which they discussed expansion of military cooperation.
The Turkish official met his Iranian counterpart, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and Iran’s president on Monday.
Iran and Turkey agreed on Monday to promote cooperation in various arenas, as in offering help for the persecuted Muslim people of Myanmar, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri announced.
Speaking at a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart General Hulusi Akar in Tehran on Monday, Baqeri said they discussed a range of issues in their meeting earlier in the day, Tasnim News Agency reported.
The Iranian and Turkish armed forces will broaden cooperation in training, holding war games, and exchanging experiences, the top Iranian commander said.
He added that the two sides also explored avenues for military cooperation to assist the Muslim people in Myanmar and in Islamic countries.
The Iranian general pointed to the fight against terrorism as another topic discussed in the meeting, saying the two sides have “made the necessary decisions.”
“We held talks on the common threats to the two countries, and also on the (secession) referendum in the Iraqi Kurdistan region with an emphasis on the maintenance of Iraq’s integrity and rejection of the referendum,” Baqeri said.
The visiting Turkish general hailed the age-old “friendship and fraternity” between Turkey and Iran, saying the two countries cooperate given the sensitive regional conditions.
According to General Akar, Iran and Turkey have reached agreements on the battle against terrorism and on measures to ensure border security.
The Turkish general also held meeting with Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani slammed the independence referendum recently held in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, saying the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) adopted an
“Paying no attention to the time and security requirements and pursuing tribal goals through this move will reduce the focus on the fight against Takfiri terrorism as the most important threat to the region and will rapidly spread the harmful security impacts on the Kurdish region of Iraq,” he said.
The Turkish general arrived in Tehran on Monday morning, two days before President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s planned visit to Iran.
According to Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, Erdogan will discuss with Iran their response to the Iraqi Kurdish secession referendum in the upcoming visit. “irresponsible and amateurish approach”.