Turkiye to hand over military base to Iraq

ANKARA: Turkiye will hand over control of its base in Bashiqa in northern Iraq to Baghdad, the Turkish presidency announced Wednesday in a joint statement with its neighbour.

"In light of progress achieved by these security measures implemented by Iraq, Turkish forces will gradually hand over the Bashiqa-Zilkan base to the Federal Government of Iraq in accordance with the agreed mechanism and timetable," a joint statement said.

The announcement followed a meeting Wednesday between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The handover's timetable was not specified.

The US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria and Iraq, Tom Barrack, hailed the agreement.

"History rarely announces its turning points; it stitches them quietly. Ankara returning Zilkan to Baghdad by agreed mechanism and timeline is one such thread: Iraqi sovereignty and Turkish security, both served," he posted on X.

With the agreement of the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, Turkiye established a military base in Bashiqa in December 2015.

According to the Turkish press, Ankara deployed up to 600 soldiers there. This sparked tensions with Baghdad, which accused Ankara of violating its sovereignty.

Ankara and Baghdad also agreed on Wednesday to "fully restore state authority in Sinjar and eliminate the presence of illegal foreign armed elements."

Turkiye has in the past conducted military operations in the Sinjar region against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

As part of a peace process conducted with Ankara, the PKK announced its dissolution in May 2025, before holding a highly symbolic disarmament ceremony in July 2025 in northern Iraq, where only some fighters remain, according to Turkish authorities.

Baghdad announced in early September that Sinjar would be placed under the full authority of the federal government and its security and administrative institutions, following an agreement reached with Yazidi armed groups for them to hand over their weapons to the state.