Trump urges Kurds to stay out of US-Israel War on Iran, backs Iraq oil exports via KRG pipeline

Peregraf - U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to facilitate the resumption of Iraq's oil exports through the region's pipeline to Turkey, while urging Kurdish forces to avoid involvement in the ongoing US-Israel War on Iran, now in its 38th day.

"We've gotten along with the Kurds for a long time," Trump told reporters, signaling that Washington anticipated cooperation in keeping export flows moving to international markets. 

At the same time, Trump said he does not want Kurdish forces to become involved in the war on Iran, warning of potential consequences.

"I'd rather have them stay away because I think they bring with them some problems and some difficult — and I know they bring death, I mean, you know, to themselves," he said.

His remarks come amid escalating fighting in the US-Israel War on Iran and ongoing regional tensions, in which Kurdish involvement has been a sensitive issue in U.S. strategy.

The comments also intersect with efforts to restore northern Iraq's oil exports, as Baghdad and Erbil reached a deal in March 2026 to resume flows through the Kurdistan Region's pipeline to Turkey's port of Ceyhan, following disruptions linked to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.