Turkmen People's Party (TPP) said on Sunday that the Kurdish Peshmerga forces are enough to protect Kirkuk province and deploying an additional force from the Iraqi army in the province will only "add up to the issues and unrest."


A press release published by the TPP on Sunday commended the Peshmerga forces "who with their extreme bravery defended the areas in general and Kirkuk in particular in a unique way, scarifying hundreds of their commanders and members for protecting Kurdistan peoples without discrimination."

"We underline that we don't forget Peshmerga as they defended the area in the most dangerous stage in the history….. We stress that Peshmerga should stay in Kirkuk as they defend the entire ethnicities in Kirkuk without discrimination"

TPP's response seems to come in response to Turkmen Front's Leader Arshad Salihi of Kirkuk province, who recently demanded that Baghdad deploy an additional force to Kirkuk.

The sacrifices that Peshmergas have given, "cannot be called off by some propaganda which aims at nothing but destroying the peaceful coexistence between Kurds and Turkmens and staging ethnic sedition," said TPP's statement.

The statement continues as "there is no need for some political parties to demand additional forces or demand forming an army unit [in Kirkuk]… We believe if this demand is met, this will add up to the issues and unrest."

The TPP also calls on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to allow for the Turkmen youth from Kirkuk to enroll in the Peshmerga ranks as volunteers and "have the honor to participate in protecting their areas and thus strengthen the historic relations that binds Kurds and Turkmens."



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