A strong Kurdistan region is good for US in Iraq

Analytics 22:25 17.10.2018
Over 200 publishing companies from 35 countries converged on northern Iraq on Oct. 10 to showcase their work at the city’s 13th annual Erbil International Book Fair. Leading officials came to see the ribbon cutting to open the fair in the Kurdistan region’s capital. It was a symbol of the normality that has swept the region more than a year after ISIS was defeated in Mosul, an hour’s drive northwest of the city.
 
The Kurdistan region is calm and stable one year after a momentous independence referendum led to Iraq’s central government sending tanks into the disputed city of Kirkuk, south of Erbil, and threatening the region with sanctions. Baghdad ordered the Erbil International Airport closed last September and many Kurds wondered what would come next. It was a time of uncertainty as Iranian-backed militias wandered freely in Kirkuk, and many Kurds thought the United States had abandoned them after years of fighting ISIS together.
 
Now the Kurdish region is a key to U.S. strategy in Iraq and the larger post-ISIS desire for stability in the Middle East. On Sept. 30, the autonomous region held elections for its parliament. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) came in first with 43 percent of the vote; the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan took second place with 20 percent. These traditional parties in the region had been challenged in the past decade by the rise of a party called the Gorran Movement for Change, which promised to reduce the role of large families in the political system and reform the economy and Kurdish army, or Peshmerga. But in 2014, the arrival of ISIS brought a crisis to the region, and people fell back on the traditional politics that had helped Kurds gain their autonomy in the 1990s.
 
The two largest parties must try to form a new government, likely led by Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani. This will provide democratic continuity for the Kurdish region — a region  historically close to the United States and more pro-Western than the Iranian-backed Shi’ite sectarian parties that have come to power in Baghdad.
 
However, one problem that Washington faces in its relations with the Kurds is the United States’ preoccupation with its campaign to confront Iran in the Middle East. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has put together the Iran Action Group to coordinate the U.S. attempt to prevent Iran’s entrenchment in Iraq, Lebanon and Syria. One aspect of countering Iran is sanctioning the militias it backs that operate in Iraq. These include Asaib Ahl Al-Haq and Harakat Hezbollah Al-Nujaba, which Congress is attempting to target for sanctions.
 
The United States generally has had a complex relationship with Erbil and Baghdad because Washington wants a strong Baghdad, to work against Iranian encroachment, yet understands that the Kurdish region is its closest ally. During the war on ISIS, for example, the United States helped train, equip and fund the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga. But the United States traditionally has backed Baghdad in disputes with the Kurds, such as over Kirkuk.
 
Now Washington faces this test again. The new president of Iraq, Barham Salih, is Kurdish. Pompeo has encouraged the new speaker of parliament to embrace a “nationalist” Iraq. But Iraqi nationalism generally has threatened the Kurdish region. When the U.S. Consulate in Erbil tweeted a hashtag of “national pride” on Oct. 10, with photos of the Kurdish region, a series of angry responses ensued. “What a sad event you do not even mention the name of Kurdistan,” one man wrote. This shows how sensitive language is and how Kurds feel the United States is trying to shoehorn their region into having “pride” in Baghdad, which has been seen as an aggressor  pressuring the region after its independence referendum.
 
Now is a optimal time for the United States to show the Kurdish region that Washington understands its strategic importance. The Kurdish Peshmerga and Iraqi Security Forces are still fighting an ISIS insurgency. In addition, Iran fired seven ballistic missiles at the Kurdish region in early September, targeting Kurdish opposition groups. The Iranian attack was exactly the opening Washington needs to confront Iran (and Vice President Mike Pence did condemn the attack). At the time, the United States was waiting for the formation of a new Iraqi government. But that government will be backed by parties linked to Iran, meaning the Kurdish region will remain the closest U.S. ally.
 
The region also is a hinge on which Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran pivot. It is an economic link to Turkey, to which it exports hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil taken from the ground daily. It is a strategic link to U.S. forces operating in Syria. And it is at the doorstep of Iran. It also plays a key role in government coalitions in Baghdad.
Azerbaijan takes measures to turn Khankandi into safe city - VİDEO

News line

"Türkiye plays an important role between Russia and Ukraine" - Says political scientist Ismail Cingoz
15:45 28.03.2024
2 schoolchildren detained in France on suspicion of sending bomb threats
15:35 28.03.2024
Ski resort in Georgia hit by avalanche
Ski resort in Georgia hit by avalanche
15:26 28.03.2024
Another protest against French colonialism held in New Caledonia, Azerbaijani flag raised
Another protest against French colonialism held in New Caledonia, Azerbaijani flag raised
15:15 28.03.2024
Media: US did not transfer all information about terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall to Russia
15:00 28.03.2024
Movement ‘Together’ calls on Armenia’s parliamentary forces to express vote of no confidence in Pashinyan
14:41 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan to participate in international trade fair in Istanbul
Azerbaijan to participate in international trade fair in Istanbul
14:32 28.03.2024
Le Pen accuses French government of fraud
14:22 28.03.2024
Armenian Government Grapples with Internal Division on Village Return Issue - Ishkhan Verdiyan talks on Ednews
14:12 28.03.2024
Ammunition found along route of Crocus City Hall terrorists
Ammunition found along route of Crocus City Hall terrorists
13:41 28.03.2024
Expert Ilyas Huseynov Predicts Peaceful Return of these territories to Azerbaijan
13:20 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan weather forecast for March 29
Azerbaijan weather forecast for March 29
12:55 28.03.2024
Russian MFA concerned about upcoming Armenia-US-EU meeting
12:23 28.03.2024
Secret Points of Pashinyan's Meeting with French Representative: Is Peace Agreement Signing Imminent?
12:00 28.03.2024
Armenia announces recruitment of border guards to work at Zvartnots
Armenia announces recruitment of border guards to work at Zvartnots
11:47 28.03.2024
The US-Armenia-EU Joint Conference is a part of the pressure plan on Azerbaijan - MP Konul Nurullayeva
11:30 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan’s central bank reduces discount rate
Azerbaijan’s central bank reduces discount rate
11:23 28.03.2024
CSTO chief: ‘Yerevan doesn’t participate in our work, but there are no statements about suspension’
11:13 28.03.2024
Ammunition found in Khankandi
Ammunition found in Khankandi
11:00 28.03.2024
Russia had been aware of preparation for terrorist attack at Crocus - says intelligience chief
10:46 28.03.2024
Scholtz reveals date of his last telephone conversation with Putin
Scholtz reveals date of his last telephone conversation with Putin
10:33 28.03.2024
Head of the SSS: France is inciting Armenia to a new war
10:21 28.03.2024
Are we in the brink of World War III? - Pundit talks on Ednews
10:10 28.03.2024
Azerbaijan's National Security: Reflecting on 105 Years of Defending Sovereignty
09:55 28.03.2024
Hikmat Hajiyev: Rasmussen fell in forgetfulness to attach payment to his report
09:35 28.03.2024
Hand grenades found in Kalbajar
09:25 28.03.2024
Titanic 'door' prop that kept Rose alive sells for $718,750
Titanic 'door' prop that kept Rose alive sells for $718,750
08:50 28.03.2024
Twitch's biggest streamer diagnosed with cancer diagnosis at 32
23:55 27.03.2024
Azerbaijan's former Minister of National Security passes away
22:41 27.03.2024
Russia has no unfriendly states, only unfriendly elites — Putin
22:25 27.03.2024
Erdogan vows to make efforts for implementation of UN resolution regarding Gaza
Erdogan vows to make efforts for implementation of UN resolution regarding Gaza
21:44 27.03.2024
Russian MFA: France's presence in the Caucasus is of an intelligence nature
21:00 27.03.2024
Record numbers of migrants arrive in UK in 2024
20:42 27.03.2024
Leo Docherty appointed new UK Minister of State for Armed Forces
Leo Docherty appointed new UK Minister of State for Armed Forces
19:34 27.03.2024
MFA: ‘We reject anti-Azerbaijani allegations in the report prepared by Friends of Armenia Network’
19:00 27.03.2024
Armenian Speaker: We are looking for people who consider those villages to be Armenian territory
18:42 27.03.2024
France evacuates over 170 nationals from Haiti
France evacuates over 170 nationals from Haiti
18:19 27.03.2024
Iran's Concerns Over Enclave Villages Return Highlight Geopolitical Complexities - Iranian political scientest talks on Ednews
18:00 27.03.2024
New details of the Crocus terrorist attack have been revealed - two suspects transited through Türkiye
17:33 27.03.2024
Political Scientist Turab Rzayev Weighs in on Armenia's "Great Armenia" Ambitions: Pashinyan's Realism or Rhetoric?
17:00 27.03.2024
Hamısı