Turkey considers economic sanctions, military options following KRG referendum

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Tuesday that Iraqi Kurds would be left in the lurch when Turkey imposes sanctions.

Speaking at an Opening Ceremony of the Academic Year, Erdoğan said that once Turkey closes oil taps, it will be over for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

“While we have not yet overcome regional challenges, we are now faced with a new crisis. The Kurdistan Regional Government insisted on holding an independence referendum. This referendum has no place in the Iraqi constitution,” Erdoğan said.

“Such a move in northern Iraq, which is home to a colorful structure in terms of beliefs and origin, is nothing but the bearer of bad news. So what happened? It was approved by 90-92 percent. Who will accept your independence? Israel. But the world does not consist of Israel alone,” he added.

The president expressed that he did not expect KRG leader Masoud Barzani to make the mistake of holding the referendum, and described the decision to hold it as “treachery.”

“About 114 countries have accepted Kosovo, yet unfortunately it is still not a state. They [KRG] believe that once you hold a referendum, you can become a state. It doesn’t work like that. As soon as we close the oil taps, everything will be over. Oil revenues will dry up when the taps are turned off,” Erdoğan said.

He added that he was in constant talks with Iran and the Iraqi central government regarding the referendum.

“The region will be dragged into sectarian war if Barzani does not turn back. Iraq must achieve national unity, not division. Iraqi Kurds will be helpless if Turkey closes the oil pipeline. The referendum is a threat to Turkish national security,” Erdoğan said.

“We hope the Iraqi Kurdish government comes to its senses and abandons this adventure with a dark end. Turkey will not hesitate to use means at its disposal if the road to peace is blocked. We are considering all options from economic sanctions to military options, including land and air space alternatives,” he added.

President Erdoğan also touched on the German election that was held on Sept. 24.

“There was an election in Germany. Turkey had held a referendum. In the course of this referendum, you saw how they attacked Turkey. Now they are attacking Turkey during their election process. Now you will see that they will not be able to form a government. This will take several months. The Netherlands attacked us and they still have not been able to form a government. We will continue to conduct honest politics,” Erdoğan said.