US defense chief urges Iraq, Kurdish forces for restraint amid rising tensions

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis has urged Iraqi military and Kurdish Peshmerga forces against facing each other and rather focus on overcoming the Daesh (ISIL) terror group amid surging tensions between the two over the disputed, oil-rich Kirkuk region in northern Iraq.

"Everybody stay focused on defeating ISIS," Mattis stated on Friday as quoted in an AP report on Saturday. "We can't turn on each other right now. We don't want this to go to a shooting situation."

His remarks came during his flight back to Washington from a three-day visit to southeastern state of Florida, where he went to hold talks with his top military commanders, including General Joseph Votel, who leads the US Central Command that oversees the Middle East, as well as General Tony Thomas, who heads US Special Operations Command, and the chief of US Southern Command Admiral Kurt Tidd.

In additional comments to Pentagon reporters later on Friday, Mattis further emphasized that Washington had been watching for the trouble and added, "Obviously, once ISIL is down and out we don't want another terrorist group to rise up and also some of the old conditions or tensions now come back to the forefront."

The development came as Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region deployed tens of thousands of Peshmerga forces to the Kirkuk region amid escalating tensions with the central government over a controversial secession referendum it held last month.

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• Kurdistan deploys tens of thousands of forces to oil-rich Kirkuk

This is while Kurdish TV channel Rudaw cited the region’s Vice President Kosrat Rasul as saying on Friday that the deployment was meant “to confront possible threats from Iraqi forces.”

“Tens of thousands of Kurdish Peshmerga and security forces are already stationed in and around Kirkuk,” he said. “At least 6,000 additional Peshmerga have been deployed since Thursday night to face the Iraqi forces’ threat.”

The deployment came following reports that the Iraqi government had sent troops to retake Kurdish-held positions in the disputed oil province though Baghdad denied such reports.

Baghdad, however, has adopted a range of punitive measures against the Kurdistan region, which defied international calls and held a referendum on separation from the mainland on September 25.

The US defense secretary further stated that the US military units are working to "make certain they keep any potential for conflict off the table."

Mattis said that "we're trying to tone everything down," adding, "Let's figure out how we go forward without losing our sight on the enemy."

He went on to reiterate that American authorities were working with both sides to find a diplomatic compromise.

"We've got to find a way to move forward," Mattis underlined. "Geography is not going to change. They're going to be alongside each other, no matter what."

He further emphasized, "We don't want to take our eye off the ball with ISIL this close to being crushed.”

The remarks came as the US is widely accused in Iraq and neighboring Syria of assisting ISIL militants in a variety of ways, including air dropping weapons for them and striking local forces during operations against the foreign-backed terror group.

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