Kurds and Americans react to Biden’s praise for Iraqi unity

WASHINGTON DC - Kurds and Americans on social media networks reacted quickly to US Vice President Joe Biden’s speech on Thursday, in which he praised Iraqi unity.

In response, some Kurdish tweeters called Iraqi unity “a joke,” while others blasted Biden for changing the position he adopted in 2006 about dividing Iraq into three autonomous regions.

“Shia don't want to be ruled by Sunnis, Sunnis don't want to be ruled by Shia, Kurds don't want to be ruled by Arabs. Iraq unity is a joke,” was the online response Biden received from one Kurd.

“We want what Iraqis want: a united, federal and democratic Iraq that is defined by its own constitution, where power is shared among all Iraqi communities, where a sovereign government exercises command and control over the forces in the field,” Biden said in his remarks at the National Defense University in Washington.

In 2006 when he was Senator, Biden proposed a bill asking for the creation of three regions in Iraq, divided along ethnic and sectarian lines, as solution for the continued bloodshed in the country. The plan called for three Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish regions.

But since becoming vice president under Obama, Biden has backtracked from his former position.

Another twitter user named Andrew Thiel reminded Biden of his 2006 plan: “When Joe Biden said we should split Iraq into 3 countries, sunni, shiite, and kurd, I said it was an idea worth exploring.”

“How many chances does a failed artificial state need?” Diyar Salih asked in reference to Iraq, which was cobbled together by the British in the early 1920s. “VP, is that what Iraqis want? Pretty sure the Kurds just want Kurdistan. You were right the 1st time.”

Trust has been growing among Kurds, Shiites and Sunnis since Haider Abadi became Iraqi prime minister last summer, taking over from the wholly discredited and distrusted Nouri al-Maliki.”

Biden has argued that the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) has strengthened Iraqi unity. He said that Kurds, Shiites and Sunnis have realized it is in their best interest to remain together.

“But the irony -- the irony of all ironies -- is that Iraq was actually -- helped form its government because of ISIL.  ISIL, the very outfit that intended to tear Iraq apart and establish a caliphate, it actually united Iraqis,” he added.

“The Sunnis realized they preferred a united, federal Iraq under a new government to being at the mercy of ISIL or dependent upon the other Sunni states,” Biden said. “The Kurds realized that withdrawing from Iraq was not a viable option, and they did not want a terrorist state on their doorstep.  I don’t know how many conversations I had with President Barzani relating to this. And the Shia, they realized they didn’t want to take on ISIL alone or become a vassal of a neighboring state.”