Barzani and Davutoglu announce opening 5 new border crossings between Iraq and Turkey

In a joint press conference the President of Kurdistan Regional Government and the Foreign Minister of Turkey , Ahmet Davutoglu after their meeting in Van city of Kurdish predominantly in Turkey , briefed by " Shafaq News " , Oglu said that “Barzani's visit to this city is an important visit , declaring his happiness to his presence for the first time in Van.

Oglu pointed to the economic relations between Turkey and Iraq , noting that the volume of trade exchange between the two sides reached 12 billion dollars.

He added that the share of Kurdistan from the size of the amount is 70% , noting that his country considers Kurdistan as its gate to Iraq .

Oglu described the meeting with Barzani as significant , "and" successful " , adding that the most important points of the discussion focused on the expansion of existing border crossings between the two sides and opening five new crossings .

For his part, Barzani said that he discussed with Oglu, increasing the number of crossings between the two sides , hoping that this would contribute to greater achievements for the benefit of both parties .

Barzani added that relations between Erbil and Ankara have witnessed a development in the last term promoting for its larger development in the future .

At the conclusion of the conference, Oglu talked about the region 's relations with the federal government in Baghdad and the outstanding problems between them because of the general budget and the export of oil , expressing his wishes to reach a solution as soon as possible .