Turkey to Transfer Bashiqa Military Camp Back to Iraq in New Security Agreement

Turkey has committed to gradually transferring the Bashiqa-Zelikan military camp in northern Iraq back to the control of the Iraqi government. This development followed a late Wednesday meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi and Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the UN General Assembly in New York, where both leaders agreed to enhance security collaboration.

According to a joint statement released after the discussions, the two sides reached an accord focused on fully restoring state authority in Sinjar and removing outlawed foreign armed elements. This reference points to Kurdish militants operating in the mountainous Sinjar region of northern Iraq. Turkey is currently pursuing a peace process aimed at disarming the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party to resolve a conflict lasting several decades.

Under the new arrangement, Turkish forces will step-by-step return the Bashiqa-Zelikan base following a mutually agreed schedule and timeline, coordinated alongside security measures implemented by Iraq. While no specific date for the full withdrawal of Turkish troops from Bashiqa was made public, Ankara originally deployed military personnel near Mosul in 2015 to train and protect local forces against ISIS. That initial deployment had previously caused diplomatic friction with Iraq, which routinely called for their withdrawal. Turkey continues to maintain several other regional bases aimed at safeguarding its national security.

Additionally, Mr Al Zaidi and Mr Erdogan reviewed bilateral relations and trade ties, emphasizing the importance of swiftly executing prior agreements and fast-tracking strategic initiatives, most notably the Development Road project.