Bagheri: Iranian and Iraqi Military Teams to Visit Borders on Thursday

Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, stated after a meeting with Osman al-Ghanimi, the Chief of Staff of the Iraqi Army in Tehran on Wednesday, October 5, that Iran does not recognize sovereignty for parties or groups in northern Iraq along its borders. He added that military delegations from both countries would visit the shared borders on Thursday. According to Fars News Agency, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces mentioned in a press conference regarding negotiations with the Iraqi Army Chief: "In this meeting, we discussed the rejection of the recent referendum in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and declare that changes to Iraq's geography and the separation of part of it is absolutely unacceptable, and we do not recognize it." The 'independence' referendum in the Kurdistan region of Iraq was held on Tuesday of this week, with over 92% of participants voting in favor. A total of 3,305,925 people participated in the referendum, which accounted for 72% of eligible voters. Meanwhile, Mohammad Hossein Bagheri emphasized on Thursday: "The Islamic Republic of Iran recognizes a unified and integral Iraq, and our shared borders, as the Iraqi Prime Minister stated, are with the legitimate Iraqi government, and we do not recognize any sovereignty for parties and groups in northern Iraq along Iran's borders. This is the view of the armed forces of both countries." The Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces added: "Tomorrow, Iranian and Iraqi operational teams will visit the shared borders of the two countries from the Iranian side, and we have also announced our readiness to establish the Iraqi government at the shared borders." In this context, Haider al-Abadi, the Prime Minister of Iraq, announced on Wednesday that military cooperation between Iraq, Iran, and Turkey is for the protection of regional security. It was also announced on Wednesday that General Hulusi Akar, the Chief of Staff of the Turkish Army, will visit Iran next week leading a high-level military delegation. Iran and Turkey opposed the 'independence' referendum in Kurdistan. In recent days, both countries conducted military maneuvers along their borders with the Kurdistan region, and Iran has closed its air borders to this area. Haider al-Abadi stated that he does not recognize this referendum and has called for its results to be annulled. However, on Wednesday, he mentioned in a session of the Iraqi parliament that the use of force against the Kurdistan region is out of the question and that he does not seek war among Iraqi citizens. On the other hand, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has threatened to impose strict sanctions against the Kurdistan region, warning that the people of the Kurdistan region will remain hungry. Previously, the United States also opposed the holding of the Kurdistan independence referendum, stating that this event would lead to further instability in the region.