Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq (cabinet.gov.krd) - Kurdistan Regional Government Spokesperson Safeen Dizayee responded to remarks by the spokesperson of Iraq's Prime Minister’s Office, Mr. Sa’ad Al-Hadithi, advising him to avoid aggressive statements and commit to respectful dialogue and mutual understanding.

Below is the text of the KRG spokesperson’s statement:

The spokesperson of the Iraqi Prime Minister’s Media Office stated that the Kurdistan Region should abide by the Constitution, cancel the results of the recent Iraqi Kurdistan Referendum, and withdraw from areas outside KRG administration. In this regard, we find it necessary to clarify the following to the public opinion of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.

First: When it comes to the right of self-determination, the Iraqi Constitution does not prohibit the people of Kurdistan from conducting a referendum to determine their future. The referendum contradicted neither the Iraqi Constitution nor any relevant international law.

Second: Apart from the fact that conducting the referendum is NOT unconstitutional, the Iraqi request to cancel the results is not within the realm of possibility. The decision to cancel the results is neither in the hands of the KRG nor Kurdistan political parties; but it is up to the people of Iraqi Kurdistan, who have spoken as the results of the referendum firmly indicate.

Third: Regarding areas outside KRG administration, the Kurdistan Region's military forces, the Peshmerga, have been protecting, since ISIS attacks, all people of these areas, regardless of their ethnic or religious backgrounds, from terrorists. The Kurdistan Region’s Peshmergas are not foreign forces, came to invade these areas. They are integral to Iraq’s defense system as clearly stated in the Iraqi Constitution.

Finally, we, in the Kurdistan Regional Government, reiterate our consistent call for respectful dialogue and serious negotiation to resolve all issues, as we did before and after the referendum. We repeat our call to resolve our issues through dialogue and negotiation, and avoid aggressive language that can only exacerbate the situation.