Turkmens Prefer Kurds to Shi'ite-Dominated Baghdad Govt : Leader



Turkmen parties in the Kurdistan Region have informed the US consular office in Erbil that the Turkmens in Kurdistan support the independence referendum, said a leader.

Speaking to BasNews on Sunday, Mohammad Sadaddin, Turkmen Development Party leader, said the consulate invited them to know about their position towards the independence referendum of Kurdistan.

Sadaddin said in the meeting the issues that the Turkmen people face in Iraq were discussed.
"We told them about the Kurdistan Region which grants the rights of Turkmens as compared with Baghdad [which does not]," the leader said.

He added the Erbil administration has also allowed for the participation of the Turkmens in the leadership meetings, in the meeting of the parties which have secured one million votes in the polls.

"This is very important for the other components and is some sort of support to them," Sadaddin stated as he noted that the Baghdad administration does not allow for Turkmens to attend meetings chaired by the Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi or Iraqi Vice President Nouri al-Maliki.

As Turkmen Development Party leader indicated even the Turkmens who have least information on politics are asked to choose between Kurds or the Iraqi government dominated by Shi'ites, they will choose Kurds.

Sadaddin believed the US is an ally to Kurds and hopes to restore stability to the region through the Kurdistan Region.

"If the ethnic and religious components back Kurdistan referendum, the US will be confident that its ally in Kurdistan will install a democratic civil state which grants the rights of all," he remarked, "Then the US will support the referendum, too."
The referendum is planned for September 25, 2017.

LINK