The fourth meeting of the high-level security mechanism between Turkey and Iraq began today in the Turkish capital Ankara. The Turkish side was headed by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, while the Iraqi side was headed by Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein. Official sources in the Turkish Ministry of Defense stated that Ankara and Baghdad are discussing during this meeting areas of joint cooperation between the two countries, especially the fight against terrorism, border security and the latest developments in the region, in addition to discussing the possibilities of strengthening the unity of understanding that was developed with the Iraqi side in the security field with additional concrete steps. The sources indicated that the two countries agreed, in May 2019, during the visit of then Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to Turkey, to reach a consensus on strengthening military and security cooperation between the two countries. They stated that it was envisioned that negotiations would tak e place in this scope of the foreign ministers, defense ministers and intelligence chiefs of both countries, as the first meeting was held in this form in 2019. According to the sources, the second meeting of the cooperation platform, known as the High-Level Security Mechanism, was held in Ankara on December 19, 2023, headed by the foreign ministers of the two countries. As a result of the relevant meeting, Iraq began to define the PKK / Kurdistan Workers' Party / as a "common threat" in a written text for the first time, indicating the continuation of mutual negotiations to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the war against terrorism. It is scheduled that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein will chair the first meeting of the Turkish-Iraqi Joint Cooperation and Planning Group later today, Thursday. The Turkish Foreign Ministry announced in a post on its account on the X platform that the preparatory meeting of the Turkish-Iraqi Joint Planning Group hel d its first session yesterday, Wednesday, in Ankara, headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Nuh Yilmaz and his Iraqi counterpart Muhammad Hussein Bahr al-Ulum. The Turkish Foreign Ministry stated in its statement that "the meeting discussed the progress of implementing the signed agreements to institutionalize relations between the two countries, the activities of the joint standing committees and priority areas of cooperation." It is worth noting that the joint planning group, co-chaired by the foreign ministers of the two countries, was formed through the strategic framework agreement signed during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Iraq on April 22. Source: National Iraqi News Agency