The Iraqi army and Kurdish forces are locked in a standoff in Kirkuk, a city in the Kurdistan Region that voted for independence from Iraq last month. Kirkuk owns 10 percent of Iraq's oil reserves. Washington Post reporter Loveday Morris, covering the standoff, joins Hari Srinivasan via Skype from Baghdad.
Hari Srinivasan:
The desire of Kurds along Iraq's northern border to govern themselves is meeting increasing resistance from Iraq's central government. Iraqi army forces are demanding the withdrawal of Kurdish troops from oil fields and military bases around Kirkuk, a city in the Kurdistan region that voted for independence last month. Kirkuk also has 10% of Iraq's proven oil reserves. The Washington Post's Loveday Morris is in Baghdad covering the standoff. Now he joins me via Skype. First of all, about the meaning of this. Why is this so important?
LOVEDAY MORRIS:
There is a long-standing conflict between Baghdad and Kurdistan over these disputed territories. The most significant of which is Kirkuk due to its oil reserves. But last month's referendum really escalated these disputes because Baghdad opposes independence, and so it appears that they must reaffirm their territorial claims to these territories. That's why we're seeing a lot of tension now.
Hari Srinivasan:
And just to give people a little quick timeline: Iraqi forces controlled this territory for a while, and then ISIS took over this territory in June, and now it's sort of back in Kurdish hands?
LOVEDAY MORRIS:
Right. So in June 2014, Iraq lost control of many areas and we faced a huge collapse in the face of the ISIS advance. More than 100,000 soldiers have fled, and Kurdish forces have moved into some of these areas – some they may have taken from ISIS, while others simply fled into the vacuum. So Iraqi forces have been in these areas since June 2014. And this is their main demand – to return to these areas.
Hari Srinivasan:
What is the likelihood that this confrontation will turn violent right now? Some kind of civil war?
LOVEDAY MORRIS:
I think at this point both sides don't want violence. Al-Abadi, the prime minister, is actually trying to defuse the situation by declaring that there will be no military attack. But at the same time there is a build-up of forces, and I think they are trying to in a sense intimidate the Kurds into leaving some areas, but they essentially don't want to see any fighting. But in this really tense situation, there can be a little spark and things can easily escalate into violence.
Hari Srinivasan:
Thank you.
