Tasnim � Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Army Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan made assurances that following recent developments in Iraq�s Kurdistan Region, Iran has no problem along its western and northwestern borders thanks to its military might.

Speaking to reporters in Tehran on Saturday, Brigadier General Pourdastan pointed to the independence referendum recently held by the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) and said it was part of a plot hatched by the US called �the New Middle East�.

He further emphasized that the US and Israel were not successful in their invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, adding that however, they tried to start from the Kurdistan Region and disintegrate Iraq.

The commander went on to say that close cooperation between the Iranian and Iraqi governments once again foiled the plot.

He also pointed to the situation of Iran�s common borders with the Kurdistan Region, saying that thanks to the Islamic Republic�s military power, the country has no problem along its western and northwestern borders.

The Iraqi central government and the KRG have been at loggerheads since the Kurds voted overwhelmingly for independence on September 25 that Baghdad declared illegal.

On October 20, Iraqi forces took control of the last district in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk still in the hands of Kurdish forces.

The Iraqi central government forces have advanced into Kirkuk province largely unopposed as most Peshmerga forces withdrew without a fight.