Putin discusses Kurdistan referendum with Erdogan in line with Russian position - Kremlin

MOSCOW, September 29. /TASS/. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin discussed with Turkey’s leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan the referendum on independence of Iraqi Kurdistan in line of the well-known Russian position, press secretary of the Russian leader, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on Friday. He refused to give details of the talks between Putin and Erdogan, which related to the referendum. "I only want to repeat the words President Putin said at the news conference yesterday, that our position regarding Kurdistan is well known, it remains unchanged, it was expressed clearly in the recent statement by the Foreign Ministry," Peskov said, adding "the discussion was in line with it." Turkey and Russia support the territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria, Turkish President Tayyip Recep Erdogan said on Thursday at a news conference he addressed together with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also said it was essential "to prevent the government of Iraqi Kurdistan from making a still graver error," meaning the referendum on independence of Iraqi Kurdistan. Vladimir Putin said on his part Erdogan and he had discussed the referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan, among other things. "Russia’s principled stance on the issue is known well enough," he said. "Our Foreign Ministry laid it out in a statement. Mr. President and I spoke about the problem in detail today." "Moscow respects national aspirations of Kurds," the ministry said in a statement. "We believe that all points at issue between Iraq’s federal authorities and the leadership of the Kurdish Autonomous Region may and should be solved through a constructive and respectful dialogue aimed at developing a mutually acceptable formula of co-existence as part of a unified Iraqi state." "We maintain our support for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of our friendly state of Iraq and other countries of the Middle East," the ministry stressed. The ministry stresses that it is of key importance now to "avoid everything that poses the risk of further complicating and destabilizing the Middle East region, which is already overburdened with conflicts." Iraq’s Kurdistan region held the independence referendum on Monday. According to the Rudaw TV channel, more than 90% of 3.44 million Iraqis voted for creating an independent state. Baghdad strongly opposes the referendum, calling it unconstitutional. Turkey and Iran were also against it, favoring the Arab country’s integrity. Washington and some other EU states also believe the referendum is inexpedient at the moment, as it undermines efforts in the war on terror and regional security. The Kurdistan Region of Iraq, also known as Iraqi Kurdistan, is an autonomous region in the north of Iraq, with its legal status fixed in the Iraqi constitution of 2005. Read more