Need to Mend Frayed Ties With Iraqi Kurdistan

Tehran should intensify diplomatic efforts to mend strained relations with the Iraqi Kurdish region given its strategic importance, particularly now that sanctions are weighing on the Iranian economy, a senior political analyst said. 
“Whether we like it or not, Tehran-Erbil relations experienced serious ups and downs after the independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan,” Sirous Borna, an expert on Iraqi affairs, said in a recent interview with the Iranian Diplomacy website. 
He was referring to last year’s referendum in the region, in which Kurds voted overwhelmingly to break away from Iraq, defying the central government in Baghdad.