The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of this site. This site does not give financial, investment or medical advice.
This morning, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked to clarify the Russian position on a referendum for unilateral secession among ethnic Kurds in northern Iraq. Iraq has condemned the move on multiple occasions.
Today, Peskov stated the Russian position in the following way,
“Russia’s position is the one in favour of territorial integrity of regional states”.
This is confirmation that Russia supports the existing borders of all states in which Kurdish militants seek to carve out new political territory. Such states include Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran.
This is fitting with Russia’s general commitment to the integrity of states globally as well as an indication of Russia’s historically good relations with Turkey and Iran, as well as Russia’s continually good relations with Syria and its restored positive ties with Iraq.
While Russia has generally had good relations with Kurdish groups over the centuries, Russia is clearly prioritising its relationship with states over relationships with non-state bodies.
Turkey which generally had better relations with Iraq Kurds vis-a-vis PKK aligned Syrian Kurds, has recently announced that it will implement sanctions against so-called Iraqi Kurdistan if the referendum, scheduled for the 25th of September, takes place.
With the exception of Israel, all regional powers are opposed to Kurdish separatism. The US has tended to distance itself from the Kurdish referendum in Iraq, in spite of the US having generally good relations with Iraq Kurds.
Currently, the US is in charge of a Kurdish led proxy militia in Syria known as the SDF. It is suspected that while the US will continue to urge dialogue between Baghdad and Iraqi Kurds, the US might take a more aggressive line in favour of Kurdish separatism in Syria owing to America’s humiliation in light of the failure of its regime change policy against Damascus.
In spite of international warnings to cancel the referendum, including from the UN, separatists in Iraq have stated that they will proceed with the unilateral vote on the 25th of September.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of this site. This site does not give financial, investment or medical advice.
Who were the signataries to the current borders of Syria, Iraq and Turkey?
Those borders are both recognized and guaranteed by the United Nations. All other questions are irrelevant.
No they ain’t. Aren’t the UN the same cabal that supported the creation of Israel (Britian was involved with both the UN and the loss of kurdistan). The UN is in the pocket of globalists and is not the peace keeping world police. Kurdistan was conveniently written of the map by a couple of key UN members for imperialist reasons thus it is no surprise the UN care little for the borders (also add the fact the UN came in after Kurdistan was conveniently removed after WW1). Now I know few are going to agree with my views, but my… Read more »
Kurds are ethnic minority in Syria representing approx.10% of Syrian population. Most of them are actually refugees from Turkey, accepted by Syria.
Once ISIS is defeated, it is in their best interest to accept Syria as their country and work with Syrian government for some sort of autonomy. Asking for anything more is going to be disastrous for Kurds. They should also avoid a trap of being a new US puppet in the region, once ISIS is defeated.
It is too late for the puppet thing. They are already being used by the U.$. as ‘canon fodder’ and dumb soldiers so that U.$. soldiers can stay out of harms way.
“The Kurds deserve at least a greater autonomy if not sovereignty in the areas of their home lands as a protected people.” I totally agree. They deserve a significant degree of autonomy within the context of existing nation states recognized by the UN. While it is a lousy model to site, for various reasons, the US Indian nations have something like that. And some “nations” have made out very well with casinos. Generally, compromise is better than civil war. The Catalans are about to test that theory.
To ‘cite’ your comment, Compromise is better than bloodshed, but compromise is the very least that must be done, especially by the ruling powers. Ultimately the situation the world over is one of wrongfully displaced peoples that has occurred via imperialism and conquest. I still believe the Kurds should be granted their own land and sovereignty or at the very least something akin to Northern Ireland. They need to be recognised as Kurds with their own culture and (unlike Northern Ireland) a fair represtation in the governments of the ‘supervising’ nations that make up the Kurdish homeland. The kurds cannot… Read more »
@ Colum re: “sovereignty or at the very least something akin to Northern Ireland. They need to be recognised as Kurds with their own culture” It is too late for that. They would end up as a pariah nation, landlocked between 4 other nations that they have ‘burnt’ one way or another. With the current state of affairs in the Middle East, there is ‘safety in numbers’ and the recognition they had as part of Syria was far greater than anything they had anywhere else. Now they are just being used by the U.$. as ‘an excuse for war’ on… Read more »
The Sykes–Picot Agreement
Splitting up of the Ottoman empire after WW1.
Try Google.
And they were?
It is spelled “GOOGLE.COM”
About 267 000 results (0,87 seconds)
I invited that, now tell me the name of the signataries of those who erased Kurdista.
There is not, nor has there ever been a ‘Kurdista’. They had been offered a large degree of autonomy under Hussein, Assad, and all the Turkish governments, instead they set about killing and erasing the Arabs, the Turks and to a much lesser extent the Iranians. Their antics have caused the Iraqis, the Syrians and the Turks to be really, really annoyed. Like the Chechens, they are about to be royally spanked. The Kurdish idiots, like the Chechens and the Georgians and a dozen other minorities believed that the Americans would ‘have their backs’. Even the Israelis believe it. They… Read more »
“There is not, nor has there ever been a ‘Kurdista'” 100% – until go-ogle or wikip start fiddling with more of our history.
They were always a nomadic tribe, with the same sick habits as their relations in that other occupied territory (where Kurds are also found) who practice ‘ethnic cleansing’
apartheid wherever they decide settle.
More pathetic nonsense from ADAM GARRIE… “Russia supports the existing borders of all states in which Kurdish militants seek to carve out new political territory. Such states include Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran.” Yeah, right. Adam likes to ignore reality and swim in fiction. In Syria, the “Kurdish militants” project is actually a polyethnic Syrian project to bring real democracy to their society. But of course Adam likes to kiss the murderer Assad’s arse. “the US might take a more aggressive line in favour of Kurdish separatism in Syria” – the DFNS already exists, and is a part of Syria.… Read more »
Talk about “pathetic nonsense” there is no such animal as the DFNS. Not now, not ever. Nor will there be a ‘state’ in Iraq’. You think Iran is going to let the Kurds set up a ‘State’? Dream on dummy. The only reason US is in the area is to steal the oil. Iraq and Syria were willing in the past to allow certain autonomy under the control of the countries, but the Kurds (thanks to the Americans) have screwed that up. when ISIL and Nusra have been buried, then SDF and Peshmerga will be next. The Kurds have been… Read more »
You smell bad Gavin Allen.
Another example of the US shooting itself in the foot. Actually, more like the groin or head. Why not alienate both Turkey and Iraq by supporting the Kurds? ISIS will very soon be defeated in Syria and Iraq. When they are, the last excuse for US presence in northern Syria and Iraq will be gone. At that point, what will the US do? Yes, it can continue to bribe the Kurds financially to maintain their military presence there, but as the Syrians and Iraqis increasingly turn to war against the Kurds to regain what is lawfully theirs, the position of… Read more »
Iraq is entirely divided and that means the US always will find reasons to maintain their presence. Syria is different: the US will remain present, but in Kurdish occupied territory. The defeat of the US isn’t worth much because the western population doesn’t realize its defeat because it’s not a straightforward one. The masses haven’t learned to think in terms of hybrid and proxy wars, despite their high opinion of themselves.
Historically, the Kurds were always on the US/Israhell side & they always end it up with the shit end of the stick ?? So as J Wayne said, Life is hard & it’s harder if you’re stupid ??
They couldn’t have done it without US support. The Kurdish regions are nothing but more forward operating bases for the Americans.
The truth is, giving the Kurds (which ones?) a state is almost like giving the Romany a State. They indeed have had a sad history wherever they stayed put. It could be said Syria treated them the best. Anyway, we know what this is all about. The old divide and conquer game of imperialists. The biggest absurdity and a giveaway on this truth, is that the zionists (a previous beneficiary of imperial divide and conquer) are ok with giving them a State but not the Palestinians, who really have the most right to one. That is if you use a… Read more »
@ Seby re: “The biggest absurdity and a giveaway on this truth, is that the zionists (a previous beneficiary of imperial divide and conquer) are ok with giving them a State but not the Palestinians, who really have the most right to one. ” And that is the crux of it isn’t it. The Palestinian have MORE right to live in ‘Palestine’ than anyone else; but it was stolen from them under the most horrible of subterfuges. They got lied to on a grand scale. It is a disgrace what has been inflicted on Palestine. But, irony of ironies, the… Read more »
Reality is that the Kurds, like the Jews (a European tribe), the Wahhabi and Salafists, are nothing but a TRIBE…………..they are not a nation.
Like the Jews and their Wahhabi and Salafist minions, they should NEVER be granted nation status. The decision of the General Assembly, to grant the Jews nation status, in 1947, was catastrophic for the Middle East and a disaster for the world.