President Barack Obama on Wednesday spoke by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, urging close cooperation in the fight against the ISIL Takfiri group, the White House said.

“Obama noted the need for close coordination between the United States and Turkey to build on these successes and to apply sustained pressure on ISIL in Syria to reduce threats to the United States, Turkey, and elsewhere,” a statement said.

In addition, the US president called for more dialogue on what he said “the appropriate level and form of Turkey’s participation in the Counter-ISIL Coalition’s efforts in Iraq.”

Obama and Erdogan agreed on their “strong support for the territorial integrity of Iraq,” the statement said.

Turkey’s positioning of troops in northern Iraq and its insistence that it has a role in the Mosul offensive have led to sharp exchanges with the Iraqi government.

This week Iraq insisted that Turkey was not participating in the Mosul attack, rejecting Turkish claims that it was.

Source: AFP