Kurds 'expand' territory into potential flashpoints ahead of US withdrawal...

Bloomberg, here

"...The changed scenery reflects the slow, relentless expansion of Kurdish forces into territory far from their officially sanctioned region......If left unresolved, opposing territorial claims could lead to military clashes, said the International Crisis Group, “As U.S. forces are set to draw down in the next couple of years, Washington’s leverage will diminish and, along with it, chances for a workable deal,” said the ICG. “The most likely alternative to an agreement is a new outbreak of violent strife over unsettled claims in a fragmented polity governed by chaos and fear.” .....The contested territory includes the city of Kirkuk, the hub of Iraqi oil production in the north. Kurdish officials have been lobbying to absorb Kirkuk into their autonomous zone and to control the area’s oil wealth; the central government objects..."