Chief justice raises cases of Turkish detainees in Ankara talks

ANKARA — Supreme Judicial Council President Faiq Zaidan discussed the cases of Turkish citizens detained or serving sentences in Iraq with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara on Thursday, Iraq’s judiciary said.

The statement did not say how many Turkish nationals are held, what they are charged with or convicted of, or whether transfers, releases or other arrangements were discussed.

Zaidan also met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the presidential complex, where the two discussed strengthening legal and judicial cooperation. The Turkish presidency confirmed the meeting without giving details.

The visit followed Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s talks with Erdogan on Tuesday on security, trade, energy, transport, water and joint infrastructure. Five agreements were signed, covering cooperation between the Turkish National Police Academy and the Iraqi Police College, youth and sports, industrial property, and transport links on the Ovaköy-Fishkhabur route. The two countries also signed a framework agreement on developing transport infrastructure in Iraq in exchange for natural resources, and Turkey’s state-owned TPAO took a 15% stake in BP Energy Company of Kirkuk Limited, giving it a role in developing the Kirkuk oilfield alongside BP and its partners.

The governments did not sign the expected one-year extension of the Iraq-Turkey pipeline agreement, which expired Monday. Officials are still negotiating a temporary extension to keep crude moving through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan line while they work toward a broader energy agreement.