Barzani: Kurdistan is in an Iraq divided along sectarian, religious lines

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Masoud Barzani, the president in the Kurdistan Region, has again re-iterated the referendum on independence will not be delayed without a better alternative, Iraq is already divided, and his role will be complete after independence is attained.

Barzani said in an interview with Saudi’s al-Arabia television station that Kurds had reached an agreement [with Iraqi parties] on forming a civil, democratic and federal state, referring to the Kurdish role in forming the current state of Iraq and its constitution. 

Yet, he said, people in the Kurdistan Region are currently living in a religious and sectarian state.

The Kurdistan Region will hold an independence referendum on the 25th of this month.

Barzani has long said that his goal is to have an independent state for Kurdistan.

He told the Saudi channel that his objective is to achieve independence for the nation and his duties will finish after independence is achieved — a statement he has previously made, going so far as to say he “was born for the independence of Kurdistan.”

He has also previously said that he will not stand for nor will he support his family members running in the next presidential elections. They are scheduled for November 1.

The United States and the United Kingdom have called the timing of the independence vote wrong, citing Iraqi unity and the ongoing war against ISIS.

 
Barzani explained to the Saudi media that Kurdish officials have tried numerous means and didn’t need to arrive at a decision to hold a referendum, adding that those calling for a delay the referendum should provide an alternative.
 

Last month, US Special Presidential Envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition Brett McGurk and a delegation including Secretary of Defense James Mattis met separately with Barzani and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.

After the visit, the US Embassy in Baghdad posted a statement summarizing McGurk’s visit, reading that the United States is ready to support a “new framework for dialogue” between the regional and central governments.

Baghdad has called the referendum unconstitutional and unilateral, and said it will not recognize the result.

Campaigning for and against the referendum and its timing officially began on Tuesday.