Turkish PM Erdoğan and US Vice President Biden agree on unified government in Iraq

US Vice-President Joe Biden, is seen during a bilateral meeting at Culture Palace in Guatemala City on June 20, 2014. AFP PHOTO Johan ORDONEZ

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden agreed on the necessity of the formation of a unified government in Iraq during a phone conversation on June 23.

The talks come at a time when Iraqi Kurds are moving away from Baghdad, as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) threat continues.

Erdoğan and Biden exchanged views on the latest developments in Iraq and agreed on the prompt formation of a national consensus government in order to protect Iraq’s territorial integrity and political union and to achieve success in its fight against terror, Turkish officials said, according to Anadolu Agency.

Concerned over Iraq being drawn into a sectarian conflict, Erdoğan and Biden underscored that the national consensus government should embrace all Iraqi citizens and give Sunni Muslims a chance to be represented again.

They also discussed the ongoing efforts to ensure the safe return of the Turkish nationals seized in the restive country, said the Turkish Prime Ministry’s office.

Meanwhile, the White House said Biden and Erdoğan both deplored the actions of the al-Qaida-inspired ISIL. Biden also called for Turkish nationals, as well as the other hostages to be released immediately.

Militants affiliated with ISIL abducted 49 people from the Turkish consulate in the flashpoint city of Mosul on June 11, one day after seizing 31 Turkish truck drivers.

Iraq has seen a marked increase in sectarian violence between Sunni and Shiite Muslims in the recent months, which the Iraqi government blames on ISIL.

ISIL, which already controls parts of Syria, has had its reach extended into Iraq since June 10, when it seized Iraq’s second-largest city...

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