Mark Williams, Bloomberg: Balance of Power: After Islamic State, Are Iraqi Guns Being Turned on Each Other?
Three weeks after Iraq’s Kurds voted overwhelmingly for independence, Baghdad moved to regain control of the oil that helped propel Kurdish dreams of statehood.
Iraqi forces took over oil fields and a military base near the city of Kirkuk that lie outside the Kurds’ semi-autonomous region but have been controlled by them since 2014. The fighting sent oil prices higher.
Prime Minister Haider Abadi has vowed to seek a negotiated way forward with the Kurds — but also to prevent a fracturing of the country. While it’s unclear how he’ll square the two, mounting international concern over Kirkuk could force an opening for emergency talks. Sustained conflict might drag in Turkey and Iran.
Kurdish fighters entered Kirkuk as Iraq’s army retreated before Islamic State offensives. Now, the collapse of the extremist group’s rule — as in Syria — is changing the calculus.
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WNU Editor: So the Kurds who saved Kirkuk when ISIS forced the Iraqi Army to flee have now been "kicked-out" by the same Iraqi Army who fled when the Islamic State went on the rampage. I still think that the Iraqi Army is too weak to confront Kurdish military forces if the Iraqi military decides to enter Kurdish regions. But this ends any hope of reconciliation between Iraq's Kurds who voted for independence 3 weeks ago, and the Baghdad government who have decided that instead of negotiations the use of force will be their preferred form of action.
1 comment:
It all comes down to which major country supports which side. My guess US will support Iraq, Russia the Kurds.
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