ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani has warned that the impending withdrawal of US troops from Iraq could leave the Region exposed to Iranian attacks, describing the move as “shameful” in an interview with the Financial Times published Sunday. “The threat is real — we are vulnerable, we are being attacked,” Financial Times quoted Barzani as saying . “Now, to be left alone without any, let’s say, appropriate defensive system, it’s shameful.” However, in a statement on Sunday, Barzani’s office said the Financial Times report did not publish the prime minister’s remarks verbatim and argued that it “mostly” reflected the author’s views and interpretations rather than his actual statements. The office then released what it described as the key points of Barzani’s remarks to the newspaper. According to the statement, Barzani said the withdrawal of US and coalition forces comes at a “critical time” and that the Kurdistan Region has been subjected to missile and drone strikes more than 1,000 times. He said leaving the region without providing a defense system was “a cause for concern,” while warning that continued instability in Iraq’s security situation could threaten the country’s federal system. "We are friends and allies of the United States, but at the same time, we also want to maintain good relations with all our neighbors, including Iran," the statement quoted him as saying. His comments come just days before the September 30 deadline for the US military withdrawal from Iraq under an agreement between Washington and Baghdad A State Department spokesperson said last week that Washington remains committed to withdrawing its military forces from the country by the deadline, reaffirming its adherence to the agreed timeline for ending coalition military operations in Iraq. “The United States is proceeding with the mutually determined transition timeline for coalition forces to end military operations in Iraq,” the spokesperson told Rudaw’s Diyar Kurda in response to an email. The departure comes as the Kurdistan Region faces continued threats from Iranian drones and missile attacks since the war between the US and Iran began in late February. Since that time, Iran has launched some 1000 drone and missile attacks on the Kurdistan Region - including an attack on Barzani’s office in Erbil in August - primarily targeting Kurdish dissident groups and killing 32 people and wounding 154 others as of early August, according to Rudaw tracking. The KRG has repeatedly maintained that the Region is not a party to the conflict and has called for an end to attacks on its territory. "We maintain continuous contact and dialogue with officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we have always reaffirmed that the Kurdistan Region is never part of any war or conflict, nor is it a threat to any party," read the statement from the Prime Minister's office. The Region lacks air defenses and cannot procure them without Baghdad’s approval. “When we are prevented from purchasing adequate weapons that are needed against these incoming missiles and drones and sophisticated systems, then of course, we are deliberately becoming vulnerable, becoming weaker,” Prime Minister Barzani told the Financial Times. Barzani also warned that continued instability, including the presence of Iran-aligned Iraqi militias that have resisted calls to disarm, could threaten Iraq’s federal system and the Kurdistan Region’s autonomy. “We are allies of the United States, and we are proud allies of the United States,” he said, adding that the Region would remain under threat as long as the US-Iran conflict continued. Barzani also cautioned that the US could repeat the consequences of its 2011 troop withdrawal, which was followed by the emergence of a security vacuum and the rise of the Islamic State (ISIS).
