Russia demands Turkey to withdraw troops from Iraq

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday his country demands that Turkey withdraw its troops from Iraq, Sputnik reported.

"Turkish actions are completely unacceptable," Lavrov said in statements.

Turkey's ex-premier Ahmet Davutoglu claimed that his country's troops are deployed to strengthen the sovereignty of Iraq. That is a completely unacceptable position, in principle, I believe what the Turks are doing deserves far more public attention by our western partners," Lavrov said.

In December, Turkey deployed about 150 troops and 25 tanks to a base in the Iraqi Nineveh province. Ankara said its troops had entered Iraq to protect Turkish instructors deployed at the base earlier to train local militias, fighting against Daesh.

Source: MENA