Turkey has expressed its displeasure with the Kurdistan Regional Government, because the latter prepared commemorative postage stamps on the occasion of Pope Francis' visit to Erbil, one of which includes a map of Greater Kurdistan, and this angered the (friends) of the regional government.
Press Release Regarding the Stamp Planned to be Issued by the KRG on the Occasion of the Visit of the Pope https://t.co/UiyuJBou8q pic.twitter.com/Dpq5NaA6PE
— Turkish MFA (@MFATurkey) March 10, 2021
The Ministry of Transport in the Kurdistan Regional Government prepared 6 postage stamps on the occasion of Pope Francis' visit to Erbil last Sunday.
One of the stamps included the map of Greater Kurdistan, including Hatay, Sivas, Erzurum, and Kars.
“Su bizi boğmaz, panik bizi boğar.”
— Giran Ozcan (@GiranOzcan) March 10, 2021
Kürdistan kimseyi boğmaz ama bu panikleri bunları kahredecek.pic.twitter.com/sRYZDgnvfk
The Turkish ministry said in a statement, "It turns out that among the commemorative stamps that the Kurdistan Regional Government is expected to print on the occasion of Pope Francis' visit to Iraq, there is a stamp depicting a map that includes some provinces in our country."
She added, "We expect the Kurdistan Regional Government authorities to provide the necessary explanation for the immediate correction of this error as soon as possible."
This is not the first time that Turkey has dealt a political slap to the Kurdistan Regional Government, when it comes to talking about the rights of the Kurds.
Earlier, Turkey had agreed with Iran and Baghdad against the referendum move that was conducted by the regional government in 2017.
Despite this, the regional government continues to establish strong relations with Turkey, and claimed that the recent visit of the Turkish Defense Minister to Erbil, during which the friendship between the two parties was discussed.
