Kurdistan independence seekers may face problems: Iranian Parliament Speaker

TEHRAN, Iran (Kurdistan24) – Tehran supports a unified Iraq, but it is the people of Iraq who decide on their future, a senior Iranian official told Kurdistan24 on Tuesday.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani responded to a Kurdistan24 correspondent’s question in Tehran regarding the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum by expressing support for the unity of Iraq.

“The people of Iraq will make the right decision on their future by considering the current situation in the region,” said Larijani in response to Kurdistan24’s Qadir Darweshpur.

“In our [Iran’s] perspective, the unity of Iraq should be preserved,” he continued. “The game that some parties have created in the region may create problems even for those countries that follow it.”

The official highlighted to Kurdistan24 that it was the people of Iraq who would decide on their future, emphasizing “the territorial unity of Iraq.”

The President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani previously called for an independence referendum in the Region.

“The people of the Kurdistan Region have the right to decide on their future,” President Barzani had stated before.

The President also criticized officials in Baghdad for not believing in a real partnership between the two governments.

“Since we could not achieve a real partnership with Baghdad, let us try becoming peaceful neighbors,” President Barzani said in Bashiqa town, northeastern Mosul on Nov. 16.

Moreover, President Barzani previously mentioned the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) would be in peaceful dialogue with Baghdad and neighboring countries regarding Kurdish independence, including Iran and Turkey.

The relations between the KRG and the federal government of Iraq has been shaky in the past few years, especially after Baghdad cut the Kurdistan Region’s federal budget share.

The Iraqi government accused the Region of selling oil independently, but the KRG claimed to have constitutional autonomy to manage its natural resources.

“The point is, if we cannot trust each other, how could we live together in the future?” The Head of the KRG Foreign Relations Department Falah Mustafa said in a conference held in Canada in November.

“It is a marriage that has failed,” he added. “We need to have an amicable divorce to bring about stability, security, and prosperity.”

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany