Barzani: We will choose independence, unity

The president of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has said during a visit to Peshmerga forces operating in Arbil and Mosul that the autonomous region is insistent about its independence, while also calling for unity against a recent call for dual management in the Kurdish region. 

"We have two options on the table: Either independence or dependence. We will choose the first," said Barzani, according to his official website. 

The "dual administration" suggestion had been proposed by the opposition Goran (Change) movement in northern Iraq, referring to an administration ruled through the city of Sulaymaniyah, where the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) under the leadership of Jalal Talabani is strong, and Arbil, where the Barzani-led Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) mostly exerts authority.

"The ones who speak of two wills are the ones who have not learned the lesson of history," Barzani said in a statement published on the KRG's official website, Rudaw TV reported.

"No one can divide the Kurdistan Region. The ones who are disturbed by unity and integrity can maintain their lives in another place that they prefer. We have not martyred lives only to remain under orders," he added.

"The enemy has done its worse but could not wear out the will of our nation. We do not have to experience this sort of an affliction over again. Among the two options in front of us - independence or dependence - we will chose independence," he also stated.

Addressing the Peshmerga forces as the "commander in chief," Barzani stressed that conflicts among various parties should not be reflected in the ongoing war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).