Turkey-Iraq dialogue's level to depend on Baghdad

A meeting last week between Turkish diplomats and Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the autonomous Kurdish government in northern Iraq, "took place in an extremely positive atmosphere," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said. He added that it was the first direct contact between the two sides in recent years.

"There will be a closer dialogue in the coming period both with the central Iraqi government and the local administration in the north on issues concerning the struggle against terrorism, energy and trade," he told in a joint press conference with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdallah bin Zayid al-Nuhayyan in Ankara.

"Naturally, the level and frequency of this dialogue will be closely linked to the concrete rhetoric and actions to be displayed particularly in the fight against terrorism," he added.

A Turkish delegation, led by Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's Chief Adviser Ahmet Davutoglu, met last week  with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the Prime Minister of the Kurdish administration in north of Iraq, Necirvan Barzani.

Meanwhile a delegation from pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) will arrive in Iraq on Tuesday to meet Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and the officials from the Kurdish administration in Souleymani, the Dogan News Agency reported.

Ankara accuses Iraqi Kurds of harboring and aiding the outlawed separatist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), whose militants use bases in the mountains of northern Iraq to launch attacks across the border.

Since mid-December, Turkish warplanes have bombed PKK positions in northern Iraq and at least 150 militants were killed in the latest raid last week, according to reports issued by the Turkish military.

In February, Turkish forces conducted a week-long ground offensive against PKK hideouts in the region, drawing protests from Iraqi Kurds and Baghdad. Tensions eased a week after the cross-border operation when Talabani, a Kurd, visited Ankara and pledged cooperation against the PKK.