ANKARA, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Turkey and Iraq will carry out a joint cross-border operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Thursday.

"Even if the Afrin operation has not yet been completed, we have the capacity to carry out both operations simultaneously," Cavusoglu was quoted by the CNN Turk as saying in Vienna during his visit to Austria.

The operation may start after Iraq holds parliamentary elections scheduled for May, Cavusoglu said.

On Jan. 20, Turkey launched "Operation Olive Branch" to clear Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militants from Afrin in northwestern Syria.

The YPG is regarded by Turkey as the Syrian affiliate of the PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and European Union.