TEHRAN - President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday emphasized the need for full implementation of security cooperation agreements between Iran and neighboring Iraq.

In a joint press conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al-Sudani in Baghdad, Pezeshkian said implementation of security agreements are essential to combat terrorism.

“We need the implementation security cooperation agreements between Iran and Iraq to counter the terrorists and foes, those who targeted stability and security in the region in the past,” Pezeshkian remarked.

In the press conference, Pezeshkian also said Iran and Iraq will increase cooperation against IS terrorism and fighting drug trafficking, suggesting that during his talks with the Iraqi prime minister it was insisted to identify weak points in the security agreements and rectify them.

Iraq has taken steps to relocate Iran’s separatist militant groups in northern Iraqi Kurdistan near the border with Iran.

Behzad Khosravi, a member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), has been transferred to Iran by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), according to an informed security source.

The source confirmed to the Tasnim news agency that Khosravi’s handover was carried out under the directive of the PUK leadership, a key political party in the Iraqi Kurdistan region.

The move follows growing cooperation between Iran and Iraq on security matters. 

In March 2023, Tehran and Baghdad signed a significant security agreement aimed at strengthening border security and addressing threats posed by militant groups operating in the Iraqi Kurdistan. 

As part of the agreement, Iraq committed to disarming anti-Iranian terrorist and separatist organizations based in the Kurdistan region and relocating them away from the sensitive border areas.

While details surrounding Khosravi's case remain limited, his transfer signals the ongoing implementation of the security agreement.