Public fuss over KRG referendum gives way to private nods
The regional players are buzzing after the Kurdistan Regional Government announced it will hold a referendum on independence, and signs point to tacit support from the United States and Turkey.
Last week’s historic decision by the Kurdistan Regional Government to hold a long heralded referendum on Kurdish independence from Iraq has elicited a flurry of international reactions. The vote, to be held Sept. 25, will cover disputed territories claimed by the Kurds and Baghdad alike, most notably the oil-rich province of Kirkuk.
It's always been a given that the blessings of one regional neighbor — Turkey, Iran or potential future neighbor Iraq — and that of the United States are necessary for an independent Kurdistan to be politically and economically viable. Deciphering these country’s respective responses may help shed light on where the Iraqi Kurds' bid to redraw borders stands. But reading between the lines is not always easy because often Baghdad will look to Tehran, as Washington will to Baghdad, and Ankara to all three and vice versa, as they calibrate their own positions.
