Erdogan threatens 'heavy price' for Kurdistan Region over Kirkuk

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday threatened to strain ties with the Kurdistan Region over the status of the province of Kirkuk which the Kurds claim.

Addressing his supporters in the northwestern Turkish city of Zonguldak, where he was visiting as part of his campaign to garner “yes” votes in the upcoming referendum to empower his office, Erdogan accused Kurds of dividing Iraq and “occupying Kirkuk.”

The Turkish President’s strongly negative statement regarding the Kurdistan Region was the first in the past several years of friendly relations thanks to commercial and political interests.

“Let the owners of that flag know that they are engaging in separatism,” Erdogan said.

The Turkish leader’s comments were referring to the flag of Kurdistan which the Kirkuk Provincial Council adopted to hoist on administrative buildings last week.

“I call on the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Administration to correct the wrong step in no time,” Erdogan added, refraining from using the official name of the Kurdistan Region.

The Turkish President’s raging rhetoric followed a decision by Kirkuk’s Council to hold a referendum on whether to join Kurdistan.

Erdogan further accused the Kurds of “setting up tricks” in the towns of Shingal, Tel Afar, and Kirkuk, which he called a Turkmen city, according to the state-funded Anadolu Agency.

“We never abide by the nonsense ‘Kirkuk belongs to the Kurds.’ Kirkuk belongs to all, whoever lives there, the Turkmen, the Arabs, and the Kurds if there are any,” Erdogan added.

The Turkish President, who urged the Kurds to “lower down that flag immediately,” also demanded only the Iraqi “national flag” be raised in Kirkuk.

“Don’t harm ties with Turkey. Or else, sorry to say, you will have to step back from the level [of relations] we currently have,” he concluded.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany