CONTEMPORARY EURASIA VOLUME VII (1, 2) Contemporary-Eurasia-3new | Page 111

MUSHEGH GHAHRIYAN
more risks on the Republic of Iraq, particularly in the current circum-
stances and challenges facing the region and threatening its people. 41
Kuwait deputy foreign minister Khaled Jarallah told that his country
will not take any measures against the Kurdistan Region and called the
sides to settle the confl ict through dialogue. 42
The Gulf Arab states clearly backed Iraq’s sovereignty, territorial in-
tegrity and called the Kurdish government to cancel the referendum of
independence. The stance of these countries demonstrates the importance
of good and constructive relations for both sides.
On the other hand, it does not mean, that the attitude towards the in-
dependence of Iraqi Kurdistan is inalterable. Moreover, had Iraq lost the
war against ISIL, there was a high possibility that Kurdish aspirations of
independence would have been encouraged.
In reality, with the support of Shiite militias and US and allies, the
army of Iraq held eff ective campaigns and captured territories under the
control of ISIS. Although Riyadh opposed the referendum of indepen-
dence, we cannot exclude, that the Kingdom will welcome the idea of
Iraqi confederation if both Baghdad and Erbil come to agreement. For
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states, considering Iran as a potential
threat for them, Iraqi Kurds can become unexpected allies against Iranian
infl uence in the region.
The strengthening of the KRG and the Kurdish position in Iraq in gen-
eral, has become a powerful strategic interest for Saudi Arabia and the
UAE. 43
Taking into account that Iraqi Kurdistan is in poor fi nancial situation
because of long-lasting low prices of oil, which ensures almost the whole
income of the budget, political, military and fi nancial pressure from the
government of Iraq, the infl uence of Turkey and Iran, the Gulf countries
can be valuable partners for the Kurdistan Regional Government. The lat-
ter needs fi nancial and political assistance to overcome internal crisis and
improve relations with Iraq, which deteriorated even more because of the
referendum of independence in 2017. The Kurds need regional support
and alliances in order to consolidate their status and to continue counter-
balancing Shi'i power in Iraq and the expansion of religious radicals. The
41
42
43
“Bahrain confi dent Kurdistan Region president will not hold independence referendum,”
Bahrain News Agency, September 21, 2017, http://www.bna.bh/portal/en/news/802493 (ac-
cessed April 30, 2018).
Leyla Shewani, “Kuwait Will Not Take Any Measures against Kurdistan: Kuwaiti Deputy
FM,” Basnews, September 27, 2017, http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdis-
tan/381741 (accessed August 27, 2018).
Hussein Ibish, “The Gulf Arab Countries and the Kurdish Referendum,” Stratfor, October 4,
2017, https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/gulf-arab-countries-and-kurdish-referendum (ac-
cessed August 27, 2018).
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