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Turkey, Syria defense, intel chiefs meet in Russia
Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar announced that the Turkish and Syrian defense and intelligence chiefs met in Moscow along with their Russian and Iranian counterparts this week.
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Iraqi government to send 200 billion Dinars to Kurdistan Region
The spokesman of the Iraqi government announced an order had been issued over sending 400 billion dinars to the Kurdistan Region, but half of the amount will be sent to the autonomous region.
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Demirtas applauds Kilicdaroglu's call against discrimination
Imprisoned former Kurdish leader Selahattin Demirtas has voiced his support for the opposition’s joint presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu's call for unity and inclusivity towards Alevi citizens of Turkey.
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Riyadh to make preparations for reopening of Iran's missions
In a phone call with his Saudi counterpart, Iranian foreign minister announced the efforts to reopen Iranian embassy in Saudi Arabia before Hajj.
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Turkish military uses PKK as justification for Iraq, Syria operations
Turkey has yet to achieve a sustainable peace with its largest ethnic group, the Kurds, who have sought greater democratic rights and self-rule since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, ordered his military to brutally suppress the large-scale Kurdish Sheikh Said rebellion in 1925 in southeastern Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the strongest Turkish leader since Ataturk, initiated a political approach to the Kurdish issue in the early 2010s but has since then pursued a military solution to eliminate Kurdish armed groups. In recent years Turkey has intensified its war against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Syria and Iraq, exploiting the weakness of its Arab neighbors.
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Syrian Kurds seeking talks with Damascus amid regional changes
The semi-autonomous Kurdish Administration, which controls large areas in northern and northeastern Syria, has expressed its willingness to meet with the regime of Bashar Al-Assad to discuss reaching a solution to the crisis in the country.
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Kilicdaroglu: gov't stigmatizes Kurds as "terrorists" to gain votes
Turkey’s main opposition bloc Nation Alliance’s presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu has stated, in a new video, that President Erdogan's government stigmatizes Kurdish people as “terrorists” when they see that "they will lose the election... to gain a few more votes."
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Kurdish discontents are growing / Vicken Cheterian
The Kurds won international support for fighting against Saddam Hussein and then ISIS. But turning autonomy into independence remains out of reach, as external threats and internal divisions multiply.
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Turkey seeking to win $527m oil award against Iraq
Turkey is considering petitioning a federal US court to enforce a $527m arbitration award it won against Baghdad over disputes regarding crude oil exports from Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, two sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye.
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Halted oil flow from Kurdistan to Turkey hurting region
Oil flows to Turkey remain frozen following the agreement between Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government. The impasse could hurt the autonomous region’s oil sector and revenue.
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Turkey to continue military operations in Syria, Iraq: FM
Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said the Turkish army will continue its military operations against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria and the Kurdistan workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq.
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Severe floods in Iraq leave several dead
Severe floods in Iraq this week have left several dead as the country faces considerable other environmental risks.
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Saudi officials arrive in Tehran to discuss reopening diplomatic missions
A Saudi delegation arrived in Tehran on Saturday to discuss reopening diplomatic missions with Iran after seven years.
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Anti-ISIS coalition welcomes organization of Kurdistan Region armed forces
The coalition against ISIS led by the United States considered the annex of the First and Second Infantry Divisions from among the forces affiliated to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and their addition to the Ministry of Peshmerga as a part of the reform plan in the armed forces of the Kurdistan Region and welcomed it.
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International backers keep Erdogan in office as support at home wanes / Turkmen Terzi
Support for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has decreased significantly, initially due to millions of Turks struggling with poverty as a result of high inflation, and later from earthquake victims questioning the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) over its poor response to the disaster.
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Nouri al-Maliki says Erbil has no other way but to send its oil through SOMO
In an exclusive interview with Sharpers news agency, former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki stated: "There is no other option for the Kurdistan region except to export its oil through the SOMO company," saying "Otherwise, the court will force us to do this."
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OPEC+ likely to maintain output in light of Kurdish oil dispute / Jack Dutton
Analysts say the OPEC+ alliance is unlikely to cut production and there could be be a oil glut in the second half of 2023.
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Bafel Talabani calls for Kurdistan Region's oil exports via SOMO
The leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Bafel Talabani, voiced his support on Sunday for resuming the export of oil through the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company "SOMO."
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Kurdistan Region oil exports to resume Monday under Baghdad supervision
Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region is to resume oil exports through Turkey Monday, but in the future, they will be supervised by the federal government in Baghdad, officials from both sides said, Agence France-Presse reported.