伊拉克库尔德人提议搁置独立公投结果

Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region has offered to suspend its drive for independence if Baghdad halts military operations that have seized large chunks of Kurdish-controlled territory over the past 10 days.

伊拉克库尔德自治区提出，如果巴格达方面停止军事行动，该自治区将搁置独立努力。过去10天里，伊拉克政府军攻占了库尔德人控制的大片地区。

A statement by the Kurdistan Regional Government yesterday came hours after the latest reports of clashes a day earlier. Iraqi paramilitary forces have vowed to target the strategic Kurdish-controlled areas bordering Turkey.

在库尔德自治区政府昨日发布声明数小时前，最新报道称双方在前一天发生冲突。伊拉克准军事部队誓言要攻打与土耳其接壤的具有战略意义的库尔德控制地区。

Such a move would not only affect the crucial border crossing but also take control of an oil pipeline in the nearby Faysh Khabur region, which would be a huge economic blow to the Kurds.

此举不仅会影响至关重要的边境通道，还将控制附近Faysh Khabur地区的一条石油管道，这将对库尔德人造成巨大的经济打击。

Haider al-Abadi, Iraq’s prime minister, has ordered his forces to retake all “disputed territories” claimed by Baghdad and the KRG, which Kurdish peshmerga forces seized in the chaos that surrounded the rise of Isis in 2014.

伊拉克总理海德尔•阿巴迪(Haider al-Abadi)命令政府军重新占领巴格达和库尔德自治区政府都宣称拥有主权的所有“争议领土”;库尔德民兵组织在2014年“伊拉克和黎凡特伊斯兰国”(ISIS)崛起造成的混乱中占领了这些地区。

The peshmerga last week withdrew from most of the areas targeted by Iraqi forces, but the move by Iraqi government forces towards the Turkish border would be a dangerous escalation into territory that is indisputably part of the autonomous Kurdistan region.

库尔德民兵组织上周退出了伊拉克部队列为目标的多数地区，但伊拉克政府军如果向着土耳其边境进军，进入无疑属于库尔德自治区的地盘，那将是一个危险的升级。

“As Iraq and Kurdistan are faced with grave and dangerous circumstances, we are all obliged to act responsibly in order to prevent further violence and clashes between Iraqi and peshmerga forces,” the KRG statement said.

库尔德自治区政府的声明称：“在伊拉克和库尔德斯坦面临严重且危险的局面之际，我们都必须采取负责任的行动，以阻止在伊拉克和库尔德民兵部队之间发生进一步暴力和冲突。”

Mr Abadi’s government has yet to respond to the KRG’s offer to suspend the results of its independence referendum. The coming days will be critical if Baghdad and Erbil, the KRG capital, are to rein in tensions and prevent a more violent escalation.

阿巴迪政府尚未对库尔德自治区政府有关搁置独立公投结果的提议做出回应。如果巴格达和埃尔比勒(Erbil，库尔德自治区首府)要控制住紧张局势，阻止更为暴力的升级，未来几天将至关重要。

The US, which has largely avoided any substantial intervention in the escalating dispute, appeared to support the latest KRG position. The state department wrote on Twitter: “We welcome #Kurdistan Regional Government statement declaring immediate ceasefire & halt to military ops. Calm & dialogue are steps forward.”

迄今基本上避免对这场日益升级的争端进行实质性干预的美国，似乎支持库尔德自治区政府的最新立场。美国国务院在Twitter上写道：“我们欢迎库尔德自治区政府宣布立即停火和停止军事行动的声明。冷静和对话是向前迈出的步伐。”

The offer to freeze the referendum is a humiliating blow for KRG president Masoud Barzani, who defied international pressure to halt the campaign. His attempt to stand against pressure from Baghdad was undermined last week by a rival Kurdish party, which cut a deal with central government making it difficult for his party to hold out.

对于库尔德自治区政府主席马苏德•巴尔札尼(Masoud Barzani)而言，冻结公投结果的提议是一个耻辱性打击，因为他曾不理会国际社会要求停止公投宣传的压力。他要顶住巴格达压力的企图上周被一个竞争的库尔德政党破坏，该党与伊拉克中央政府达成协议，让巴尔札尼的党派很难坚持立场。

In its latest statement, the KRG called for dialogue with Baghdad “on the basis of the constitution” — significantly, a phrase Mr Abadi has used. Central government has argued that the KRG independence poll, held on September 25, is illegal based on the Iraqi constitution.

在最新声明中，库尔德自治区政府呼吁“在宪法基础上”与巴格达对话;具有重要意义的是，阿巴迪使用过这个表述。伊拉克中央政府一直辩称，根据伊拉克宪法，库尔德自治区政府9月25日举行的独立公投是非法的。

The KRG said the referendum, in which voters overwhelmingly backed secession from Iraq, would be a stepping stone to negotiations for an amicable split. Turkey and Iran, which feared the move could inspire their own Kurdish populations, came out strongly against the poll and have closed their airspace.

库尔德自治区政府曾表示，公投将是谈判友好分离的奠基石。绝大部分选民在公投中支持脱离伊拉克。担心此举将鼓励本国库尔德人的土耳其和伊朗，坚决反对这场公投，并关闭了各自的领空。