Iraqi Prime Minister Issues Ultimatum to Kurds

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has given the Kurds an ultimatum to either annul the results of a referendum in northern Iraq or face isolation and sanctions.

On September 27, Prime Minister Abadi reaffirmed the government in Baghdad's position that the Kurdish referendum was unconstitutional, while the Iraqi parliament called on the military to take control of key oil fields held by Kurdish forces and called on all foreign governments to close their diplomatic missions in the Kurdish capital Erdbil.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has given the Kurds an ultimatum to either annul the results of a referendum in northern Iraq or face sanctions. Photo: AP

Prime Minister Abadi issues ultimatum

Speaking to parliament, Prime Minister Abadi gave the leader of the semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan Region (KRG), Masoud Barzani, an ultimatum to hand over control of the region's international airports by Friday (September 29) or face a ban on flights to the Kurdish region.

Within hours, airlines announced they would suspend flights to Kurdish-controlled airports at 3 p.m. GMT on September 29, the deadline set by Baghdad.

On September 25, Kurds in northern Iraq voted for independence in a non-binding referendum designed to give Mr Barzani territorial bargaining chips. Final results announced late on September 28 showed nearly 93% of the vote was in favor of independence and 7.3% were against. According to the electoral commission, more than 3.3 million people (72% of eligible voters) participated in the September 25 vote.

Regarding this referendum, Prime Minister Abadi said: "We will not negotiate on the results of the referendum. If they (the Kurds) want to start negotiations, they must cancel the referendum and its results."

However, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's request was rejected by KRG Transport Minister Mowlud Murad at a press conference in the capital Erbil on September 27. He said that Kurdish control of airports and maintaining direct international flights to Erbil was part of the fight against the Islamic State. Murad expressed hope that the crisis could be resolved by September 29, otherwise the KRG economy would suffer heavy losses.

Iraqi Kurds Deterrence Exercises

But the Iraqi government is not giving in. On September 27, an Iraqi military delegation arrived in Iran to coordinate military efforts, apparently part of Baghdad’s retaliatory measures following the Kurdish referendum.

Meanwhile, Iran and Türkiye have begun joint military exercises near their borders with the KRG. In recent days, Iraq and Türkiye have also held separate exercises.

Earlier, the Iraqi Parliament asked Prime Minister Abadi to send more troops to the Kirkuk area to control the oil fields there.

A resolution passed by parliament in Baghdad demands that “the government place Kirkuk’s oil fields under the control of the Iraqi Oil Ministry”. It also calls on Prime Minister Abadi to “order security forces to deploy in disputed areas, including Kirkuk”.

The Kirkuk region, which is also home to Turkmen and Arab communities, was included in the independence referendum held by Kurds on September 25, 2017.

According to Kienthuc.net.vn