Hakan Fidan in Baghdad: Iraqi Turkmens are loyal citizens of Iraq

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, in Baghdad for an Organization of Islamic Cooperation session, met Iraqi Minister of State and Iraqi Turkmen Front leader Mehmet Seman Ağaoğlu. Fidan described Turkmens as loyal citizens of Iraq who are very conscious about preserving their identity.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who is in Baghdad for the 52nd session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers, met on Oct. 17 with Mehmet Seman Ağaoğlu, Iraq’s minister of state and chairman of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, and an accompanying Turkmen delegation.

Ağaoğlu, who previously served as governor of Kirkuk, recently joined the Iraqi government as minister of state. Congratulating him on his new role, Fidan said, “It was important that a minister came from the Front.” He said he had conveyed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s thanks for the step to Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and Council of Representatives Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi.

Hakan Fidan with Iraqi Turkmen Front leader Mehmet Seman Ağaoğlu and a Turkmen delegation

“Loyal citizens of Iraq”

Fidan said Ankara has closely followed the situation of the Iraqi Turkmen Front and the problems of the Turkmens for years. “The solution to these problems is not independent of the solution to Iraq’s general problems and other problems. They need to be managed by linking them together. We discussed what can be done about them,” he said.

Fidan said the Turkmen community has always been a constructive part of Iraq’s overall fabric and has never engaged in destructive or divisive activity. “They are loyal citizens of Iraq. They are also very conscious about preserving their own identity. That is exactly what we want,” he said. He added that Türkiye and Iraq are extensions of each other in geography, culture and history, and that this bond should be turned into a more institutional structure that works in everyone’s interest.

OIC chairmanship passes to Iraq

The Baghdad session was convened under the theme “Dialogue and Solidarity: Two Fundamental Pillars for Promoting Peace and Sustainable Development.” Türkiye, which took over the chairmanship at the 51st session in Istanbul in June 2025, handed it over to Iraq. Fidan said very important issues of close concern to the Islamic world, above all the Palestinian question, were examined at the meeting.

The 52nd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Baghdad

In his opening speech, Fidan called Israel’s expansionist policies and attacks the greatest security threat in the Middle East and urged OIC members to show a common will and act in close coordination with international actors. He called for decisive steps against countries that have moved their embassies to Jerusalem, saying, “The only way to achieve a just and lasting peace is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the basis of the two-state solution.”

Fidan also stressed the need for uninterrupted humanitarian aid to Gaza, the preservation of Syria’s territorial integrity, Israel’s full withdrawal from southern Lebanon and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb. Condemning attacks on Saudi Arabia by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, he expressed solidarity with Riyadh.

OIC foreign ministers pose for a family photo in Baghdad

Talks with Iraq’s leadership

In Baghdad, Fidan also held a series of meetings with Iraq’s top leadership. He said Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has a “very serious vision” for advancing relations with Türkiye. The two sides discussed energy, connectivity, the Development Road Project, security and defense cooperation, counterterrorism and Sinjar.

Hakan Fidan meets Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi in Baghdad

Fidan was received by Iraqi President Nizar Amidi, to whom he conveyed Erdoğan’s greetings and congratulations on his new post. Fidan said it was their first face-to-face meeting since Amidi took office, noting that the president had previously served alongside former heads of state.

Iraqi President Nizar Amidi receives Hakan Fidan in Baghdad

With Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi, Fidan discussed issues on the Iraqi parliament’s agenda and Türkiye-Iraq relations, and with Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, the general political situation and regional developments.

Hakan Fidan and Iraqi Parliament Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi

Security was the focus of several meetings. With Falih al-Fayyadh, chairman of the Popular Mobilization Commission (al-Hashd al-Shaabi), whom Fidan has known since his years at Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT), he discussed steps toward disarming certain armed groups in Iraq. With National Security Adviser Qasim al-Abboudi, he addressed the security dimension of bilateral relations. Fidan also met Faiq Zaidan, head of Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council.

Hakan Fidan and Popular Mobilization Commission chairman Falih al-Fayyadh