Speaking in an interview with the Iraqi media, Iraqi PM Mahmoud Othman (Kurdistan Alliance) slammed the US for reported plans to provide drones to Turkey, saying it was “collusion” with Turkey to bombard the border areas.

“The Americans have taken a decision to supply the Turkish side with drones to kill the Kurds in Kurdistan,” Othman insisted, adding it showed the US “are playing a bad role in the region.”

Turkish forces have been launching strikes against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) targets in Iraqi Kurdistan for months now, since the PKK launched an ambush that killed a number of Turkish soldiers. Tensions are on the rise, and Iraq has repeatedly condemned the air strikes, with allegations of some civilian casualties.

For the US, the decision is somewhat more complex, with the prospect of alienating Kurdish officials balanced by the hope that deals with Turkey will keep a bigger presence in the region around Iraq after the end of the year.

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