Kurdistan Regional Government

Turkey opposes the upcoming referendum for a Kurdish state in Iraq, but in order to express this opposition it must be careful to maintain a balanced policy, academic Hasan Köne tells the Hürriyet Daily News. 

Why do you think Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Massoud Barzani has chosen this timing for a referendum?

Turkey has accused Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) leader Massoud Barzani of "dissolving Iraq," vowing to take "all necessary actions" to contain any fallout from the independence referendum at a national security meeting just days before the Sept. 25 vote. 

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar will pay separate visits to Iran in the coming days amid rising tension over the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) bid to hold an independence referendum on Sept. 25 and continued efforts to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria. 

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has hinted at possible sanctions on the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) if KRG leader Massoud Barzani goes ahead with the independence referendum, warning him "friendly."

Ankara has warned Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) that there will be a "price to pay" for its insistence on holding an independence referendum later this month, calling on the administration in Arbil to think again.

Turkey has warned Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region that "there will most certainly be a price to pay" for its insistence on holding an independence referendum later this month.

A Foreign Ministry statement released on Sept. 14 also welcomed the Iraqi parliament vote that rejected the planned Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) referendum on Sept. 25 as unconstitutional.

Iraq's parliament voted on Sept. 12 to reject a referendum on Kurdish independence planned for Sept. 25, authorizing the prime minister to "take all measures" to preserve Iraq's unity.

Kurdish lawmakers walked out of the session before the vote and issued statements afterwards rejecting the decision.

Iraqi Turkmen political parties have reiterated their opposition to an upcoming referendum on Kurdish regional independence, calling on supporters to boycott the Sept. 25 poll.

The world has forgotten the fate of refugees, the aunt of Aylan Kurdi, who became an international symbol of the ongoing refugee crisis after photos of him lying face down on a beach in Bodrum emerged in 2015, has said.

Turkey is expecting a bustling period in its foreign policy. Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım is scheduled to leave for a visit to Washington and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will be heading to New York to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations.