MESOP : ONLY 5 % REST – Turkish Foreign Minister: 95% of Iraqi Army is Sectarian

09.09.2014 – BasNews, Turkey – The new Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has stated that the sectarian political system in Iraq will continue to inflame tensions and conflicts. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also said that the system is one of the main reasons of the emergence of the Islamic State (IS) and its subsequent strengthening after the Iraqi army withdrew from key towns and cities.

‘Taking the weapons left by the Iraqi army was a huge gain for the IS militants. All the tensions and conflicts that exist in Iraq at the moment are due to the sectarian nature of both the political system and the Iraqi army,’ said Çavuşoğlu.

Commenting on the current situation in Iraq, Çavuşoğlu said, ‘Soon the new Iraqi government will be established and Turkey will support it. The government should be a consensus government and encompass all the components of Iraq including ethnic and religious minorities.’

He continued, ‘In the latest meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the US also stated the necessity of having a consensus government for Iraq because this government is required to stand up to and defeat terrorist groups. A unified government will be more effective and can greatly decrease tensions and conflicts.’

Çavuşoğlu claimed that this is also important for Syria. Assad’s regime should be removed and a consensus government established in the country, otherwise the fight against terror will be unceasing. In response to a question concerning helping Iraq against IS militants, Çavuşoğlu said, ‘When the fight against IS insurgents started in Iraq, we had a discussion about helping and supporting the government and Iraqi army. We drew our red lines at this meeting.’ ‘Now, 95% of the Iraqi army is sectarian. When military equipment gets sent to Iraq, nobody knows whereabouts in the country it goes. When aid and weapons are sent to Iraq, the new Iraq and the creation of a new terrorist organization must be considered. Also, any weapons sent to Iraq must not fall into the hands of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) fighters,’ added Çavuşoğlu .