Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that the Turkish army is at the Iraqi border, ready to take “necessary steps” as the Kurdish independence referendum unfolds. Erdogan called the Kurdish referendum an "unacceptable" move, while the border with Iraq has been closed except for people traveling from Turkey.
Earlier, Turkey's foreign ministry reacted to the referendum, stating it would consider the results as "nul and void," however, Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said Erbil would never be a threat to Ankara and added that Turkey has no better friend than the Kurdistan region.
The Turkish president threatened to halt oil exports from Iraqi Kurdistan by cutting off the pipeline, while Prime Minister Binali Yildrim stated other sanctions will be considered as well.
