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Kurdish Referendum: Iraq Starts Major Military Drills with Turkey along Common Border

Kurdish Referendum: Iraq Starts Major Military Drills with Turkey along Common Border
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The Iraqi army commenced major drills with Turkish military along the common border after a highly controversial referendum on independence was held in the Arab country's Kurdish region in open defiance of the central government in Baghdad.

Kurdish Referendum: Iraq Starts Major Military Drills with Turkey along Common Border

Iraq's Defense Ministry announced in a statement carried by the Arabic-language al-Sumeria television news agency on Monday that "Lieutenant General Othman al-Ghanmi, the army's chief of staff, announced the start of large-scale Iraqi-Turkish military exercises along the common border between the two countries."

The development came hours after Iraqi legislators demanded deployment of army troops to areas disputed with Kurds amid growing tensions between the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government [KRG], led by Massoud Barzani, over a non-binding referendum on the secession of the Kurdish region from Iraq.

Earlier in the day, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced that Iraqi army would take part in an Iraqi-Turkish military exercise along the common border.

The provocative vote, which was announced by the KRG earlier in the year, was held in the region much to the consternation of the international community, particularly the regional countries, that warned it could most likely throw the already violence-weary country into more trouble.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on Monday that Ankara would seal the border with the Iraqi Kurdistan over the contentious plebiscite.

Erdogan did not rule out the military intervention in Iraq's Kurdish region to counter the creation of a Kurdish state on its southeastern border, hinting that the would-be state could be a safe haven for Kurdish militants who fight against Ankara.

Turkey, among others, has strongly opposed the referendum from the beginning and has already warned that the disintegration of Iraq has the potential to turn into a major conflict.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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