On May 5, 2016 an editorial was published in the Washington
Post entitled “Kurdistan
deserves an amicable divorce from Baghdad” by Masrour Barzani, the son of
the Kurdish president Massoud Barzani. The article said that the Kurdistan
Region would consult with Iran and other regional countries on the proposed
independence referendum. The proposal to break away from Iraq was immediately
rejected by the Iranian Foreign Ministry. The ministry’s spokesman Jaberi
Ansari told
the press that Tehran stands for the unity of Iraq. He suggested that Iraqi
leaders get together and focus upon the real dangers that face the country like
the Islamic State. Iran’s opposition to the Kurdish independence was
re-iterated in September. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hussein Jaber Ansari
was quoted
as saying that Kurdish independence would lead to regional instability, the
division of other countries, and more wars. Kurdistan will eventually have its
sovereignty, but it will take years of negotiations with Baghdad, Syria, Iran
and Turkey. Without some kind of regional agreement the existence of the new
country could be threatened. Ironically, right now no one in the area is ready
to see the Kurds leave except some of Iraq’s ruling parties that are angered by
the Kurds moves on issues such as oil, the disputed territories, the budget,
etc.
SOURCES
Barzani, Masrour, “Kurdistan deserves an amicable divorce
from Baghdad,” Washington Post, 5/5/16
eKurd, “Iran rejects Masour Barzani’s remarks over Iraqi
Kurdistan independence,” 5/9/16
- “Referendum on Iraqi Kurdistan independence paves way for
regional war: Iranian official,” 9/18/16
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