There's a potential conflict looming for Turkey that hasn't been getting the attention it deserves, especially as it would involve one of Ankara's very few remaining regional partners: the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq.

Turkey's statements about the KRG's upcoming independence referendum vacillate slightly between criticisms and warnings, just short of outright rejection. KRG President Massoud Barzani is determined to hold the referendum Sept. 25.

When Barzani announced his decision to ultimately pave the way for the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan on Turkey’s southeastern border, the Turkish Foreign Ministry reacted June 9.

“We have been conveying for some time Turkey’s concerns about the independence referendum … to the government of Iraq and the KRG, as well as to the leading members of the international community. In this regard, we have been stressing that, at a time when critical developments are unfolding in the region, such a move would benefit neither the KRG nor Iraq and that it would have negative consequences which will cause further instability,” the ministry's statement said.