Iraq could ‘compensate’ for preventing Arbil trip

ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency

Yıldız invited Iraqi officials to Turkey to discuss energy issues. AFP photo

Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız said he believes that the Iraqi government will compensate for their embarrassment over his blocked Arbil trip.

“I believe that they will compensate for their embarrassment, because they are our brothers. They know that we behaved in accordance with the Iraqi Constitution,” Yıldız told reporters after attending a session at Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission.

Yıldız was forced to abandon plans to fly to Arbil and land in Kayseri instead when the Iraqi government rescinded permission for him to land in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq.

Turkey respects territorial integrity

Turkey completed all the legal proceedings for his Arbil trip, Taner Yıldız said, adding that Turkey had respected and would continue to respect Iraq’s territorial integrity. He will invite the Iraqi deputy prime minister and petroleum minister to Turkey to discuss energy issues, he said.

When asked if the latest incident would affect oil deals with the Kurdistan Regional Government, Yıldız said they had not made any mistake so they would not retreat.