Moscow expects ‘unpredictable’ Ankara will avoid further reckless actions

“We hope that this concern that the UN Secretary-General and several members of the Security Council had shown during the meeting we had convened, will cool down the hot heads in Ankara, that they will settle the situation in Iraq in the way that would satisfy the Iraqi government,” Vitaly Churkin said.

Russian diplomat stressed that Moscow hopes Turkey “will not carry out any new reckless moves, including on the Syrian territory.”

READ MORE: Baghdad ultimatum to Ankara expires, Moscow to discuss Turkish military invasion at UNSC

Up to 150 Turkish troops equipped with tanks and artillery crossed into Iraq’s northern province, allegedly to train forces battling Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL). Turkish troops did not simply cross the Iraqi border into the Nineveh province, but penetrated 100 kilometer into Iraq, reaching the Bashiqa region, about 10 kilometers northeast of Mosul which has been occupied by IS terrorists since mid-2014.

“I have come to the conclusion those actions were unexpected for the US, which is rather strange, which once again proves Turkey is an unpredictable player, which may undertake actions that not only cause protest among the Iraqis, but may even bewilder the US,” Churkin added.

Iraqi Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim reiterated that Baghdad considers the deployment of Turkish troops “illegal” and in violation of the UN charter, demanding their withdrawal. However, he added that Baghdad and Ankara want to resolve the issue in bilateral discussions without raising the issue with the council.

Turkey has ignored Baghdad’s ultimatum to withdraw its troops and, according to the Iraqi PM, was lying when it said it received Baghdad’s blessing to invade part of its territory.

Meanwhile Ankara claims that heavily armed troops are necessary to protect an Iraqi Kurd training mission, which is taking place near the frontline with IS.

“It is our duty to provide security for our soldiers providing training there,” the Guardian cited the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu as saying in an interview with Kanal 24 television. “Everybody is present in Iraq … the goal of all of them is clear.”