KRG says it will respect Iraqi court ruling against secession

Iraqi Kurdish authorities said on Tuesday they would accept a court decision prohibiting the region from seceding, signalling a new phase in efforts to restart stalled negotiations over its future.

Kurds in northern Iraq voted overwhelmingly for administrative independence in a referendum in September, defying the central government in Baghdad – which had ruled the ballot illegal.

Neighbouring Turkey and Iran, which have their own Kurdish communities, also condemned the ballot.

The Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) said on Tuesday it would respect the November 6 ruling by the Supreme Federal Court, which declared that no Iraqi province could secede.

"We believe that this decision must become a basis for starting an inclusive national dialogue between (Kurdish authorities in) Erbil and Baghdad to resolve all disputes," the KRG said in a statement.

Concession to central government

The concession marks the KRG's latest attempt to revive negotiations with central government, which imposed retaliatory measures, following the referendum.

They included an offensive by Iraqi government forces and the Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation Forces (Hashd al Shaabi) last month to wrest back control from the KRG of the oil city of Kirkuk and other disputed territories.

Iraqi PM Haider al Abadi had previously urged the northern semi-autonomous administration to abide by the court's decision.

The court is responsible for settling disputes between Iraq’s central government and the country's regions and provinces. Its decisions cannot be appealed, though it has no mechanism to enforce its ruling in the KRG-administered region.