Leader: US, Zionist regime seek to create ‘new Israel’

Making the comments in a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Tehran, Ayatollah Khamenei slammed the Kurdish vote as an act of “treason” and a “threat” to the entire region and a move that benefits the US and the Zionist regime.

“Iran and Turkey must take any possible measure vis-à-vis this incident and the Iraqi government must act decisively in this regard,” the Leader underlined. 

Ayatollah Khamenei underscored the importance of political and economic cooperation between Iran and Turkey to confront possible Kurdistan secession.  

During the meeting, which was also attended by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Erdogan called for the formation of a “strong alliance” between Turkey and Iran.

Erdogan said Turkey, Iran, and Iraq need to carry out joint and simultaneous measures in the face of the Kurdish referendum he called a US-Israeli plot.

“Based on irrefutable evidence, the US and Israel have reached a general agreement on the issue of Kurdistan,” Erdogan said.

The Turkish president said Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani made an “unforgivable mistake” by holding the referendum.   

 

‘Sectarian plot’

Earlier in the day, the Turkish president held talks with his Iranian counterpart. The two presidents vowed to work closely together to prevent the disintegration of Iraq and Syria and to oppose the Iraqi Kurds’ drive for secession.

“We want security and stability in the Middle East … The independence referendum in Iraq’s Kurdistan is a sectarian plot by foreign countries and is rejected by Tehran and Ankara,” Rouhani said, IRIB reported.

“We will not accept a change of borders under any circumstances.”

Iran and Turkey have already threatened to join Baghdad in imposing economic sanctions on Iraqi Kurdistan and have launched joint military exercises with Iraqi troops on their borders with the separatist region.

Erdogan said Ankara was considering taking further measures against Iraqi Kurdistan.

“We have already said we don’t recognize the referendum in northern Iraq… We have taken some measures already with Iran and the Iraqi central government, but stronger steps will be taken,” he said.

Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdistan region announced on Tuesday it was calling presidential and parliamentary elections for Nov. 1. Baghdad has responded with further punitive measures.

Iraq’s central government, its neighbors and Western powers fear the vote in favor of secession could spark another, wider conflict in the Middle East region to add to the war in Syria, and fear it could derail the fight against Daesh.

“A referendum which was conducted by sitting side by side with Mossad has no legitimacy,” Erdogan said, referring to the Israeli intelligence agency.

Israel has denied Turkey’s previous claims of involvement in the vote, but has welcomed the Kurds’ vote for independence.

 

Four MoUs singed

Rouhani also said on Wednesday that Tehran and Ankara planned to expand their economic ties.

“Turkey will import more gas from Iran… Meetings will be held next week to discuss the details,” he said.

The two sides signed 4 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) covering cooperation in economic, banking and cultural areas.

The documents include an MoU for customs cooperation, an MoU for cooperation between central banks, a cooperation document between Turkish Radio and Television Corporation and Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting ‎as well as an MoU on cooperation in the field of archive materials.

President Rouhani said the two governments are resolved to raise the value of annual trade exchange to $30 billion.

It has been decided that Turkey import more gas, Rouhani said, adding that Iran would also embrace Turkish investment in the gas industry.

According to Rouhani, the two sides have also come up with plans to keep their three joint border crossings open around the clock as part of efforts to boost the transit of commodities.