Patriotic Union of Kurdistan President Bafel Jalal Talabani received Thabet Muhammad Al-Abasi, the Iraqi Defense Minister in Baghdad.
In the meetings, the PUK president and the defense minister discussed the latest military and security developments and measures to eradicate the remnants of ISIS and emphasized the cooperation and coordination between the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army, especially in areas where there are security gaps to maintain peace and security in the regions between the Iraqi army and Peshmerga.
President Bafel Jalal Talabani stressed the importance of relations between Iraq and the Kurdistan region and greater coordination between the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army. President Talabani said that the security situation in Iraq requires all of us to cooperate and coordinate to protect the country's stability and our people.
They also discussed several joint projects to improve relations and increase military operations. Both sides agreed that protecting the lives of Iraqis and fighting terrorism should be a priority.
Since the 2017 independence referendum of the Kurdistan region, many gaps have developed between the Peshmerga and Iraqi security forces, leading to a security vacuum in the disputed territories that ISIS has used as a safe haven to launch attacks against Peshmerga and Iraqi security forces. On Friday, ISIS terrorists assaulted an Iraqi military outpost, beheading four soldiers.