Iran, Turkey exchange ideas over military issues
August 15, 2017 - MEHMET ALI OZCAN/ANADOLU AGENCY -Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Baqeri said on Tuesday that Iran and Turkey share safe and secured borders; however, it was important to pay a visit to Turkey to exchange ideas over military and regional issues.
Meeting his Turkish counterpart, Chief of Staff General Hulusi Akar, Baqeri added: “Turkey is an important neighboring country of Iran and enjoys a high status in the region and the Muslim world.”
“It has been quite a while since the two countries had meetings on this topic; so it was important to make this visit to discuss regional developments, the countries’ security, and confronting terrorism.”
Heading a high-ranking delegation, Major General Baqeri is on a three-day visit to Turkey.
Baqeri is scheduled to meet other highly political and military officials in Turkey including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Turkey’s Minister of National Defense, Nurettin Canikli.
Iran and Turkey enjoy cordial bilateral relations. Despite some differences on regional issues, Iran and Turkey are two sides of a trilateral mechanism to maintain a cease-fire in certain parts of Syria.
Turkey has started building a wall along its border with Iran in parallel with the Turkish barrier along the Syrian frontier.
Turkey claims that the construction work is aimed at improving security by halting the infiltration of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants and illegal smugglers.
An informed source at the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in May that Turkey must keep Iran updated on any construction of a wall along the two countries’ border.
The source added that Iran welcomes Turkey’s plan and does not oppose it; however, Ankara must notify Tehran before any move.
Iran is also fighting a PKK offshoot in its northwestern border region with Turkey. Iranian forces killed five PJAK terrorists in an ambush there last June.
PJAK randomly carries out hit-and-run attacks on Iranian targets, after which they retreat to their lairs in Iraq and Turkey.