kurdistan is unthinkable. if you look at it - the land is kurdistan. the land is kurdistan, there's no deputy about it. >> what is dispute is what is beneath the land. that is oil. kirkuk is home to one of the oldest and richest oil fields and there is enough to tip the balance of power in the region. when the islamic state swept across northern iraq, the kurdish army outgunned and overwhelmed retreated. in kirkuk the peshmerga found the resolve to surge forward, each as the iraqi army which had been guarding the field fled, bringing kirkuk under the influence of the kurdish government. while they have the fields in their possession, kurdistan is yet to benefit. >> protection and an export of oil has basically stopped in kirkuk. production has come down, when i started it was around 450,000 barrels, to 230, 250 barrels. we are now down to nothing, basically. >> kirkuk is the richest oil field in northern iraq. it's not the only one. in the last few years the kurds developed other fields, built a pipeline throu

the kurdistan region has been in combat now for over two months. the assistance provided by the united states, the air strikes that you mentioned, have had a major impact in halting isis advancements throughout the country, and, in fact, have bolstered our forces to be able to push back on isis and retake some of the territories that isis took from us a few weeks ago. >> what has the u.s. specifically provided to you? >> some weaponry has made its way to kurdistan from the united states and from allies around the world, but we are having a problem in the sense that baghdad is now asking that all we onry be redirected through baghdad which is a problem for us, bret. >> yeah. so as far as direct assistance from the u.s. to consideredish fighters in heavy weapons, for example, that has not happened. >> we've not received heavy weaponry yet from the united states. we've made this request. >> to be clear about the isis threat, is there an imbalance in the weapons they have and the weapons you have? >> there is a great imbalance in the weaponry, bret, be

because the kurdistan regional government does need to be broken down into barzani's kurdistanic democratic party and the talibani patriotic afghanistan. and they are divided and trying to play off each other between turkey, iran, and the pkk. so what has happened? what candidate onslaught of the islamic state do for the kurds? it created a shared existential threat to this idea of kur ish nationalism. so that they're calling all the kurds to fight isis. and when the islamic state came into mosul, and the iraqi, kurdish peshmerga under barzani fled, who saved the day? it was the pyd and pkk. even symbolically, this has played very well into the pk k's hands, particularly among the yazidis who are blaming the pyd for running away, and it's the pkk considered the savior who is now in mt. sinjar who effectively continued to fight. so this whole illage of the pk kflt coming into northern iraq and the kurdistan region remains in the minds of many kurds today. and that is something that has changed. secondly, even if you look at some of the discourse of what's going on between these parties, they

. >> what would kurdistan do?oing to help him and be part of this new process in baghdad. we hope that we can reach the results. first, we must work together and that is the first step. working together, and then trying to solve the problems. the problems has not only to do with baghdad and the kurds, but we are now facing the terrorists group isis. so we must fight also isis and to clear the country from isis. >> how much time does he have, the new prime minister of iraq, to prove to you, the kurds, that he's serious, he wants to unite the country? >> we need the first step from his side. that is not so difficult. first step has to do with the fact that the iraqi government cut our budget, so he must solve that problem. and then trying to have another step towards solving the problem, which has to do with disputed area with peshmerga forces, with oil and gas issues. when hem will have the first steps toward solving the problem, we will be there. if not, there will be a different story. >> there will be an effort

so imagine kurdistan being just under 5 million so the population of kurdistan suddenly increased by 15% while not having funds to pay their people's salaries and while they are still withholding the budget. so in any case, the kurdish leaders have come around and have begun investing seriously in baghdad's political process. they now have a president who was instrumental in stopping maliki from extending into a third time term. they are engaged in negotiations, but they have a long list of demands and preconditions for mr. abadi. some of which might be beyond his powers. they want gauarantees that -- they want guarantees not just from himself but from the house of shias as well as iran and u.s. and others who are putting pressure on them to come forward. they want guarantees that the next prime minister will not be like mr. maliki. he would not be in a position to use the budget and people's salary as a political tool to punish rivals. he should not be in a position to repeat policies on oil and gas and genuinely try to find middle grounds and arrangements. so the kurds want to make

i mean the land is kurdistan. the land is kurdistan. there is no dispute about it. >> what is disputed is what's beneath the land. it is home to one of the world's richest oil fields. it could tip the balance of powerods out gunned, in kirkuk, the peshmerga found the reds off to surge forward as the iraqi army which had been guarding the oil fields fled bringing kirkuk under the influence of the kurdish government while they had the fields in their possession, kurdistan has yet to benefit from the oil. >> production and export of oil from kirkuk has basically stopped really production has come down, for example, when i started was about 450,000 barrels a day to about 230, 250 baurlz a day before these events started. so we are now down to nothing basically. >> kirkuk is the richest oil field until norther iraq. it's not the om one. the kurds have developed other fields, built a pipeline through turkey and much to the dismay of baghdad, they have begun exporting oil, filling tanker ships with crude and trying to sell it. now the kurds fi

the federal government, and the kurdistan regional government should move quickly to reach agreement on the outstanding payment. finally, it is time for the pervasive issues of revenue and budget sharing to be resolved in line with the constitution. as always the united nations in iraq is ready to continue facilitating this process. all members of the international community should continue to work closely both with the government of iraq and the kurdistan regional government and extend to iraq the security, humanitarian, and developmental assistance it needs. mr. president the stakes are very high for both the people of iraq and the region. iraq and all its regional neighbors have an unprecedented opportunity to restart bilateral relations based on mutual interests and partnerships. this cooperation should be open and inclusive of all neighbors who can contribute to addressing the challenge of isol. the recent adoption of security council resolution 2170, the arab league resolution 7804, the paris conference on peace and security in iraq, and the recent discussions held at nato all

kurdistan, same sort of thing.e kurds will protect themselves, and they're willing to fight for some of these borderline areas of iraq between kurdistan and iraq proper. so i think you have to look at what each ally can and will realistically do. the good news is, the number one, most important ally here will be the iraqi army, and the iraqi army is being and used to be capable, and the main reason it's not capable now is because of political problems, not because of military problems. if we can see a government of national unity form i think the iraqi army will become the key ally in defending their own territory, has they should. >> you wrote recently the history of using limited air power in wars like this one shows that a few pinpricks from the sky rarely make a difference on the ground. what are we doing -- are we doing the wrong thing? >> no, i think what we have done so far was effective as far as it went. i think the obama administration -- i would criticize the number of aspects of its iraq and syria polic

it is not only for those in kurdistan, but for the world who opposes terrorism.he first delivery of german weapons is on its way. the shipment includes antitank guns, rifles, and machine guns. >> meanwhile, fears are growing for two german hostages seized in the philippines by n.l. -- by a militant islamist group that has links to islamist state -- islamic state. >> at 215 million philippine pesos, or over 400 million euros within 15 days, or they say they will execute this german sailor and his wife who were abducted five months ago. the militants are also demanding that germany ended support for the u.s. lead fight against the islamic state. the hostages are thought to be held by militants in sulu province. the terror group says it is finding -- fighting for the islamic state in the philippines, separate from the catholic majority. it demands ransoms to finance its war. the group -- group came to prominence in 2000. they took hostages. they were freed after months of captivity. the abu sayyaf group has little to about 300 followers today. in july, the leader pl

kurdistan they captured last month.mic radicals of i.s. kurdistan they captured last month. but the kurds are signaling they're ready to go further. >> translator: the peshmerga have been able to get back most of the parts of kurdistan that were lost. definitely, there's a bigger and broader plan to destroy the terrorists, the peshmerga are ready to play an active and major role. >> r >>. >> reporter: the dam itself was retaken recently by the kurds, with help from american air strikes. from here, the president could make out i.s. positions in the distance, improving slow going, dislodging the militants. they fight hard. some blow themselves up when they run out of ammunition. they also have access to advanced weapons that the kurds don't have. so the kurds are ready and willing to do their bit on the ground, no question about that, but what they stress over and again is although they appreciate american air support, what they really need is modern, more advanced and heavier weapons if they're to do the job properly. th

. >> kurdistan without kirkuk is unthinkable.f you look at it, the land is kurdish land. there is no dispute about it. >> what is disputed is what's beneath the land. >> that's oil. kirkuk is home to one of the world's oldest and rich est oil fields. there is enough there t could tip the balance of power in the region. when the islamic state swept across northern iraq, the kurdish army out-gunned and overwhelmed, retreated across hundreds of miles of territory. but in kirkuk, the peshmerga found the resolve to surge forward even as the iraqi army which had been guarding the oil fields fled bringing kirkuk under the influence of the kurdish government. while they had the fields in their possession, kurdistan has yet to benefit from the oil. >> production and export of oil from from kirkuk has basically stopped. really production has come down for example, when i started, it was around 450,000,000 barrels a day to about 230, 250 barrels a day before these events started. so we are now down to nothing basically. >> kirkuk is the ric

baghdad is not keen to let kirkuk become part of kurdistan. >> independents of kurdistan without kirkuk the land is kurdistan, there's no dispute. >> reporter: what is disputed is what is beneath the land, and that is oil. it's home to a rich oil field and enough there to tip the balance of power in the region. when the islamic state went to northern iraq, the kurdish army retreated across hundreds of miles of territory. in kir cook the peshmerga resolved to surge forward, each as the iraqi army fled, bringing kirkuk under the influence of the kurdish government. while they had the fields in their possession, kurdistan has yet to benefit from the oil. >> production and expert of oil from kirkuk basically stopped. really, production has come down, when i started, it was around 450,000 barrels to about 230 to 250 barrels before these events started. we are down to nothing, basically. >> kirkuk is the richest oil field in northern iraq. it's not the only one. in the last few years, the kurds developed other fields, built a pipeline through turkey, and to the desmay of baghdad they have dep

kurdistan is semi-autonomous with its own military called the peshmerga.erican air support, the peshmerga are holding a tense front line against isis. earlier this month we started our reporting on that front line to explain isis-- what it is, where it came from, and how it blitzed through two countries. in june, the leader of isis declared himself ruler of a new nation which he calls the islamic state. of course, no country on earth recognizes that state, but if it had a border, this would be it. these are kurdish peshmerga forces in northern iraq. and right here across the bridge you can see the black flag of isis flying over isis territory. all muslims know what's written there in arabic, "there is no god but god and mohammed is his messenger." but the true meaning of this banner is written in blood and it's up to another muhammad, first lieutenant hazhar muhammad, to make sure the flag never crosses this bridge. why is this bridge so importan"" this is the road to kirkuk," he told us. the city of kirkuk is ten miles behind us. and it's the gateway to i

we've seen that up here in kurdistan. we've been embedded in some of those operations. they are making an impact. none of that, however, would be possible without those critical u.s. air strikes. there have been more than 150 according to u.s. central command. but hearing the president, he says he will expand those air strikes. that was obviously welcome news to the people of kurdistan. >> anna, just before obama speaks, the white house releasing the details that they're freeing up $25 million in immediate military assistance from the iraqi forces, shipping that money to the iraqi and kurdish fighters i understand. based on what you've seen, because you've been embedded with them so long, where is that money likely to go first? isis have some real hardware they've stolen from the kurdish fighters, things like anti-aircraft missiles, but where is this money likely to go? >> reporter: that's right. isis, when they made that rapid advance, they walked into major cities like mosul where the military and police just walked away, ran away really. that's probably more accurate

so the financial situation in kurdistan is very bad. one of the most urgent requests that kurdish delegation had in baghdad with mr. abadi was to do something quick. even before he started forming a government, to persuade his colleague, mr. maliki, to send some funds, even if it's in the form of grants. so that is definite. to fight a major war, while not having the sufficient funds to feed people. and of course, over and above that, the interment of displaced people. kurds never forget these things. the oil issue, i think the united states should not -- this is personal advice -- i think we all want the united states as well as any other country in the world to do what is legal, what is constitutional. but if iraqis, and all these years between baghdad to decide whether something was constitutional or not, they're convinced that it's constitutional, it shouldn't be for the united states at the moment at this time of need to then delay this process, and start thinking about the g grammattic policy. if it's not economic independence, it

we spoke to senior officials here in kurdistan. are you prepared to go to mosul. the operations are getting closer and closer. mosul falls outside of the borders of kurdistan. officials said we do not want mosul as neighbors. that is where the isis leader, al baghdadi made his address to the world. you know, they need to go after it. they need this global coalition and they need many more u.s. air strikes in the weeks and months ahead to cripple isis in the lead up. john. >> beating isis in iraq requiring liberating mosul. that is not easy as the air strikes seem to have been nearly effective. the air strikes will not be in a place like mosul. anna coren, covering iraq. thanks. >>> new york city police on high alert after an online posting urge isis supporters to hit times square. officials say there is no official threat, but bill bratton says this is more than dangerous than al qaeda because of the effective use of social media. the commissioner said new york is a plane ride away for those who have the proper documentation. >> thousands of potential fighters ove

>> thousands protesting in berlin, calling on germany to lift its 20 year ban on the kurdistan workers party, the pkk. it is considered a terrorist organization by the eu and u.s. since the 1970's, they have fought for an independent kurdish state. in turkey it has cost 45,000 lives. in 1990's, pkk followers attacked consulates and travel agencies. the group has since sworn off such attacks. it is now engaged in the battle against islamic state jihadists. >> the pkk plays a central role. the kurdish fighters in northern syria are an offshoot. in the mountains in iraq, it was pkk from the party's central office who shielded the minority in the retreat and escape from the region. >> unlike the pkk, another group, the peshmerga, have received to german weapons to help against i.s. critics question of the groups are working together and whether the pkk could misuse the weapons. on the other hand, the pkk's fighters could wipe out i.s. for the west, it poses a dilemma. >> if an organization is listed as a terrorist group, that prevents countries from working with him. for european organizat

now kurdistan, that whole area, that's where isis is.urds. >>> >> it's not just a question of can we help the kurds but can the kurds help the world? many of us are depending on them to come together to fight isis. we need to support them. train them. arm them. provide the intelligence as well as the air power to make sure that they are successful. >> the key to defeating isis. isis took over fallujah in january. >> the kurds are key to northern iraq because the kurds are fighting for kurdistan. we should be helping them. we should have helped them a long time ago. but if you're talking about as many have said. squeezing the balloon and letting they will all flee back into syria. the kurds are not going to fight that fight for us. unfortunately the folks on the ground say it will take six to 12 months to train, equip, vet and send back into the field the free syrian army that will number 5,000 people. by the time they get back from being trained in saudi arabia, you will probably have 45 to 50,000 fighters and will have to fight a two fr

the use of kurdistan may flow ways to kabari. until recently, they fought a bloody civil war that killed thousands of people. this apparent show of solidarity could be seen as a sign of how isil is shifting allegiances in this region. al jazeera. still ahead this half hour, getting paid under the table means no taxes. we'll tell you why many mexican businesses now want to go legitimate. plu plus, you think we are not capable? if it was a marshan, we would do it like that. >> celebrities join mass marches on the streets of london and new york to draw attention to climate change. >> every saturday, al jazeera america brings you controversial... >> both parties are owned by the corporations. >> ..entertaining >> it's fun to play with ideas. >> ...thought provoking >> get your damn education. >> ...surprising >> oh, absolutely! >> ...exclusive one-on-one interviews with the most interesting people of our time. >> you're listening because you want to see what's going to happen. >> i want to know what works what do you know works? >> c

in the last two weeks, i've traveled the 600-mile front line between kurdistan and the islamic state. and officer after officer has told me that the strikes are a game changer. and in fact, before, i would say two or three weeks ago, you saw islamic state push all the way from the syrian border to the iranian border. and in fact, the kurdistan region no longer boarded the rest of iraq, it just bordered, and they have been able to take back village after village, and the mosul dam, which was significant, and in the last two days, they were able to crush the siege. and it was a humanitarian crisis about to happen. the islamic state has had that siege going for about 70 days, but it's also strategically important. emmerly sits on the highway to baghdad, and now that they control, now that kurdish and iraqi forces control the highway with the aid of the u.s. airstrikes, they have effectively isolated the eastern flank of the islamic state, and they have connected kurdistan to iraq once again. >> josh rushing in erbil, iraq, and thank you very much. dan was working for the new york it time

now kurdistan, that whole area that's where isis is. can we help the kurds? >> well, it's not just a question of can we help the kurds but can the kurds help the world because many of them are depending on others in the middle east to come together to fight isis. we need to support them, train them, arm them provide the intelligence as well as the air power to make sure that they are successful. >> so are the kurds the key to defeating isis, ollie? the isis took over fallujah in january. mosul in the summer, early summer. >> well, the kurds are key to northern iraq because the kurds are fighting for kurdistan. i mean, let's not kid ourselves here and we should be helping them. we should have helped them a long time ago. if you are talking about as many have said, squeezing the balloon and letting them all flee back into syria. the kurds are not going to fight that fight for us. unfortunately, the folks on the ground right now say it's going to take 6 to 12 months to train, equip, vet, and then send back into the field the so-called free syrian army. it's goin

this would be very much a request coming from the kurdistan government.ready has made a general request to the eu as a group for arms, training and all that. on this question of air strikes, i gather there is a move in the pipeline as i say to have a formal request to the british to join in as well. as i say, they basically want to get everything they can, training, armor and so on. they had a shock when the islamic state turned on them last month. peshmerga collapsed. it was intervention from the air that saved the day a, saved irbil from probably falling to this advance which seems to have taken them by surprise. >> jim, of course islamic state is target not just iraqi territory but syrian as well. i want to ask do you think there's a sense in which western states like the u.s. and uk might have to do a deal with president assad to try to deal with him against islamic state? >> reporter: well, as you know, they have kind of rule had the out. they regard him because of his own exactions against his own people, his own atrocities, torturing people in deat

now kurdistan, that whole area that's where isis is. can we help the kurds?it's not just a question of can we help the kurds but can the kurds help the world because many are of them are depending on others in the middle east to come together to fight isis. we need to support them, train them, arm them provide the intelligence as well as the air power to make sure that they are successful. >> so are the kurds the key to defeating isis, ollie? the isis took over fallujah in january. mosul in the summer, early summer. >> well, the kurds are key to northern iraq because the kurds are fighting for kurdistan. i mean, let's not kid ourselves here and we should be helping them. we should have helped them a long time ago. if you are talking about as many have said, squeezing the balloon and letting them all flee back into syria. the kurds are not going to fight that fight for us. unfortunately, the folks on the ground right now say it's going to take 6 to 12 months to train, equip, vet, and then send back into the field the so-called free syrian army. it's going to n

so they control -- kurdistan region. so they control territory if a way they never have before. they have some of the most sophisticated recruitment materials in the world today, through facebook, through twitter. they know exactly what the message is and who they need to target to join them in the islamic jihad and unfortunately in my home state of minnesota we know all too well how successful the islamic state has been in drawing in literally thousands from western europe to join them in jihad, but also americans as well. they'rele -- they're the cool kid on the block, if you will. that's who young people are attracted to. as i said earlier, the leader of the islamic state is a man amed baghdad i --i -- baghdadi, who went on to reconstitute this horrific islamic jihad called the islamic state. he's in his early 40's', he's in the prime of life. he believes this is his moment. he has declared himself the head, the kay live of the new state -- caliph of the new state, the caliphate. he was involved in al qaeda leadership for decades. he was literally the number three in al qaeda

but the units have been able to retake territory but they're not going to go significantly beyond kurdistanre or less, the every taken that territory. the rest of iraq, there is the iraqi army, which has largely disappeared since the beginning of the year. we spent billions rolling it up and the end result was the weapons we provided ended up in hands. the president is talking about supporting local forces. it could be effective in theory and the sunni areas, but it is going to be hard to get them set up given that isis is there. and also that they would have to work with the government that sunnis absolutely don't trust. in syria, the problem with supporting the syrian opposition is that we don't really have a good feel for who all these people are. they really have no prospect of defeating assad. we don't know if we can rely on them to fight isis. the kurdish military have been fighting isis for well more than a year. , i want to askd her reaction to the president's speech and his new policy and also this whole idea of asking congress to finance the reach raining once again, the creation

the peshmerga will fight in kurdistan, fight for sudden stan, they want to be kurdistan, not iraq.ot no use for iraq. that ship has sailed. you ask anyone involved in any way with that region and they'll tell you that. the iraqi troops have not stood up one single time. they just lost another battle two days ago, lost as many as 300 people and have melted away. the iraqi generals were on the phone with the isis people, and the isis people said we got your children and we'll kill them and all they just melt away. as for the moderate syrian rebels bunch, have yet to find out who the hell they are. this is -- >> in the case of iraq, the arguments you're making are the arguments made in 2006, and then george w. bush launched the surge, and the surge involved creating a fighting force, a viable fighting force out of the it should -- shiite military, and getting the sunnis -- talking bat sunni national guard -- to throw off in that case al qaeda in iraq, and now isis, and the brutal way they ruled that part of the world. the areas they controlled is not necessarily something even the sun

i think what we should do, our best case is to declare the survival of kurdistan, they are very pro u.s have the same goals and values we do, and tell the arab nations and the iranians that the isis threat over there is a threat to us, but it's a far greater threat to you and you get in there and clean that up. >> you know, i'm so glad to have somebody else say that, because general, one of the frustrations is that it looks like the blood being shed on behalf of a stable middle east is essentially being shed by the americans and the israelis and everybody else is happy to buy a ticket and watch. but i don't see the saudis sh showing up and going out there to battle and being the boots on the gruchbd. >> the saudis have to feel the heat before they're going to do that. if we're going to do it, they're just going to sit back and watch. the saudis are reluctant to get into a battle against isis, because isis is doing a lot, they're killing iranians, the saudis can't stand the iranians, the saudis are reluctant to get on a sunni on sunni war. the saudis are reluctant to do anything that wou

military's overthrow of saddam hussein helped businesses in kurdistan take off.airstrike from that same military against the islamic state inshore companies here could survive and company owners continue to thrive. >> no idea how much money? 10 million, 20 million? >> more than 20 million. >> american air power has long secured most kurdish borders. ultimately, it is only filling just a few kurdish pockets. >> now, we will bring you back close to home. data out this morning when it comes to the u.k. economy. manufacturing data is out. light is one description of it. 52.5. we were estimating 55.1. a little bit of a mess on that. a little light in terms of the estimate. quick look at sterling, let me show you how it has been reacting. a heads up on what is going on. weaker, aking at a little bit weaker. anyway, talking manufacturing and talking about britain's aspirations to maintain itself on the global stage, let's talk about what is happening when it comes to heathrow. britain should back the development of a single hub airport, that is what the federation says

the use of north kurdistan must through in waves. the turkish government - i.s.i.l. could be shifting allegiances in this region. >> the turkish president recep tayyip erdogan discussed setting up a buff are zone. those talks took place earlier. let's bring in carol, unhcr's representative in turkey, joining us from ankara. when they opened the boarder yesterday, we saw so many thousands coming across. it gave us a scale of the problem. how is anyone managing to cope. >> fortunately turkey opened the border and received people and leapt into action. once again, they have facilities at the border for security checks, health checks, they are fact sinuating children. and we have assisted them with mobile regs strags centers, where people can be registered. and assigned a place to live if they are not object stay with families. many arriving have been hosted generously in families in towns throughout the south. there are buses taking people to empty places in camps, and other locations. many people in schools, in places of condolences, funeral homes and parks are still b

if you look at the situation of kurdistan, they got within 30 kilometers of irbil, but were not able to get any further. of course, the u.s. air strikes make a huge difference in blunting any isis push forward. certainly in baghdad, it would involve a lot more men and materiel and hardware and ammunition than isis has at the moment. john? >> with these air strikes, especially in iraq, we've seen that momentum slowed by isis. how are the isis fighters changing their tactics as a result of those air strikes? >> reporter: well, from kurdish commanders we have spoken to, they say whereas before, isis was driving out in the open, and i'm sure you have seen these videos, sort of convoys of four-wheel drive vehicles and hum veals going through the open terrain. that's no longer the case, according to these kurdish commanders. most of those looted hum veals and vehicles have been stowed away where they can't be spotted. at the moment, they're driving around in civilian vehicles, keeping a lower profile to avoid being detected by anybody. in the kurdish north, the advance has. been slowed. th

what is interesting, if you look at the map, if you follow the red line, you see that kurdistan, theutonomous part in the north is no longer committed to the rest of the iraq. it's cut off by the islamic state. once the air strikes started, that changed rapidly, right before my eyes, as we went through village after village, reconnecting kurdistan. the air strikes are really effective. one, in northern iraq you have villages connected to another cluster of major towns. there's not a lot inform between. there's wide open road, a lot of sand that that vehicle can be stuck in, but makes is easy pray for air strikes, and setting up artillery. you have to do it outside a town. the challenge of air strikes comes when you get to the cities like mosul, up in the north, tikrit, that's where they become almost useless, because there's so much collateral damage. what you can do is cut off the movement of the islamic state in between the cities, and create a siege mentality. >> that is the point. talking to the kurdish commanders on the ground say it's effective. as we look into syria, those res

thank you. -- also with regard to curtis stand -- also with regard to kurdistan?> kurdistan today is a front line with isis between -- with isis. the peshmergas are fighting. the real confrontation is that. using iraqi and syrian and american fighter jets along with the french, the situation was tilted in their aim for. turkey has a number of hostages, and they used to say they were unable to provide help openly for curtis stand and for iraq -- for kurdistan and iraq because of the number of hostages. turkey also is ready to present help. i met president it again here, and he expressed readiness to help and cooperate -- i met president erdogan. they should check that these people are really tourists or they are coming to the borders and stepping into the isis areas. >> i would like to thank you for having us your perspective and for taking questions from the members here on all these difficult subjects. let it him a hand. thank you very much. -- let's give him a hand. [applause] >> i also thank everybody, and i am so happy to meet you, to meet this great crowd her

mo sul in the summer. >> the kurds are key to northern iraq fighting for kurdistan.ith should be helping them and should have helped a long time ago. if you are talking about as many have said squeezing the balloon and letting them back in, the kurds won't fight that fight for us. folks on the ground now say it will take 6 to 12 months to train, equip, vet and send back into the field the so-called free syrian army. that will number 5,000 people. by the time they get back from being trained in saudi arabia you will have 45,000 to 50,000 isis fighters fighting a two-fronter war. the free syrian army against assad and isis. it's a formula for disaster. >> it's 15,000 more than they have now of isis with 5,000 more iraqis trained or kurds. >> one equation is if we don't do strategic action in the next few weeks isis will double. this is going faster than before. 15,000, doubled to 30,000. they are not recruiting anymore. they are drafting people against tens of thousands of young men asked to join isis. >> when you look at a solution to defeating isis, each thing you ta

but it's a very important route, because it connects the capital of kurdistan to mosul.osul is the next phase of this operation. it is iraq's second largest city, a city of some 2 million people and is an isis strong hold. so it would be important to take back mosul. they're trying to regain territory. that is the peshmerga, the ku kurdish forces. ten days ago, we were with them and we were 40 kilometers away. now where we are standing are 30 kilometers. so they are making progress. >> the effort now is all about taking back mosul. how difficult a task will that be and how hard will it be to hang on to it as isis threatening to take large chunks of territory? >> reporter: no one is under any illusions that it is going tobin easy mission. according to the kurdish president who we sat down with yesterday, he said there needs to be a coordinated effort. we have to remember that mosul lies outside the boarders of kurdistan. it is iraqi territory. but up here, in this part of the country, it is the peshmerga who are the boots on the ground. it's the peshmerga fighting isis. s

they will say, no, we want kurdistan. we don't want iraq anymore. so we'll give the weapons away. >>> prosecutors are revealing more about the man accused of killing his co-worker. they say he cut off her head. details on what they're calling a revenge attack and terrorism versus murder charges. >>> plus word of a different incident also in oklahoma, another man threatened to cut off his co-worker's head. what in the world is going on is this if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me, and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic... this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage. doctors have been prescribing humira for ten years. humira works by targeting and helping to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. it's proven to help relieve pain and stop further joint damage in many adults. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have

i have been honored to see the kurds in combat in including in the women in kurdistan.ma administration given you the tools you need to defeat isis? >> we have received some equipment from the international community, united states included. united kingdom, germany, france and many others. however, remember, isis has captured heavy equipment from the u.s. military given to the iraqi security forces in 2011. bradley vehicles, tanks and mortars. for us to go on the offensive and take back the areas isis has taken we need heavy equipment to be on the same footing or better. >> what happened to mosul dam. >> we were talking to our intelligence folks on the ground when they were attacking in mosul >> they were telling us that our peshmerga forces are firing ak-47s and rpgs at the humvees. what was happening is like throwing a rock at the wall. that's how they were bouncing off these vehicles. as a result, the peshmerga forces retreated and took back with the help of air strikes. u.s. and other allied air strikes. >> did the maliki government screw kurdistan? be frank here. i

the kurds are fighting for kurdistan. ed them a kid ourselves here. long time ago. about as many have said squeezing a balloon and letting them all flee back to syria the kurds are not going to fight that fight for us. unfortunately the folks on the ground say it will take 6-12 p months to train, equip, vet, and stenned back into the field the so-called free syrian army. it has 5,000 people. by the time they get back from being trained in sawed budi ara you will have 45-50 isis fighters and they will have to fight a war against assad and isis. it's a formula for disaster. >> 15,000 more than they have now of isis with 5,000 more iraqis trained or kurds to train. >> one equation if you don't do strategic action against isis now isis is going to double. this is going very fast, faster than before. they doubled to 30,000 and they are not rekruting any more. they are going to see ten's of though uses of you-- thousands young men. >> each thing you talk about is necessary but not efficient. you talk about arming the kurds that's one part of it. you have to come at them a

they only really need to protect the borders of the kurdistan region. but are they prepared to go beyond? and the answer is yes. yes if the united states is running the military operation, george. >> and there is a great deal of talk about more boots on the ground and where that would come from whether it comes from countries like the united states or the uk. but what is the sense you are getting from the troops on the ground? do you get the sense they are looking for more help, for more soldiers to fight alongside them? >> yeah, it's interesting, george. i think the officials know -- we are capable. we have the bodies to fight isis. i think the reality is slightly different to that. but president obama has made it perfectly clear there will be no u.s. combat forces here in iraq. the only role they will play is advising, assisting, you know, special forces will be brought in. they will be hoping to train up the peshmerga as well as the iraqi military. you know, it was the iraqi military that left the city of mosul. they fled when isis was coming on the

the line out of kurdistan has been a futile exercise unless you hit isis in syria.ening, it is welcome news by the kurdish government as well as the iraqis. they are pleased. also, an arab coalition involved in the air strikes. they feel that is encouraging. they do however stress they hope an intensification of the air campaign here in iraq. we have been on the ground now for six weeks. the entire time this u.s. air campaign has been underway. you mentioned 190 u.s. air strikes to date, plus those several french air strikes over the weekend. making a difference. having an impact on the ground. christine, isis is not retreating. they still occupy a third of the country. while the strikes are taking out the enemy positions and armored vehicles, the artillery pieces, you are not seeing isis scurry away. they are digging in and fighting. it is hoped by officials here that the united states will step up its campaign. the global coalition as well. we know australian fighter jets ready to go in the uae. we hope they get involved. they don't want this piecemeal approach. o

otherwise not going to work. >> jim in irbil and kurdistan.hank you very much. >>> just to remind you, there are so many different issues on the agenda here. both iraq and syria, russia, afghanistan too. just before the summit began, the host david cameron and president obama visiting took some time out to go to a local school here. they came into a lesson that pupils were getting about nato and about the importance. a little bit of local color here. all these children have been writing postcards to world leaders about peace and what they want for their futures. we want an unusual meet and greet before the leaders david cameron and president obama came back to celtic manner where i am to get down to this critical talk about ukraine. there will be ceremonies and more formal talk about afghanistan and its future within the next few hours. an awful lot to go on here. >> even a school visit. that's charming. thank you very much. we expect much more live from the summit meeting. one of the issues on the agenda is threat from the islamic state. one

>> that is going to go to the kurdistan region. >> foreign secretary, can we move on now to russia and ukraine? you said last week that russia and i quote, has chosen the role of pariah, rather than partner. and that it has rejected efforts to draw it into the roles based international system. doesn't have any impact on our diplomatic approach to russia? >> i don't personally believe in dissembling. i think it's very clear that russia has had the option of being in a partnership relationship with the west. indeed, that's been our strong preference and desire for the last, nearly 25 years since the end of the cold war, to draw russia into the committee of nation's, to the partnership with russia, recognizing that we won't agree on everything and with strategic differences of outlook, but in a sincere belief that we are able to work constructively together as partners. russia has shown by its actions that it rejects that notion of partnership. and i chose the word pariah deliberately. we have a long-established taboo in europe on changing the boundaries of nation states by force of arms.

i've lived in kurdistan for eight years. i want to return to my family. they won't let me. >> reporter: in the kurdish capital of erbil there is optimism for the future and anger at the previous government of nouri al-maliki. a government kurds say has treated them unfairly. >> unfairly treated, and that is in fact, we hope that it is a new start, and with this new start will be partners. >> reporter: for new the kurdish region remains part of the union but it's not an union that lives with talk of living happily ever after. >> world leaders will converge on the unite united nations in two weeks and the direction of that debate will rest o on what is determined. what role is the u.n. expected to play in the coming weeks? >> reporter: i don't think the u.n. will play any role it has not done so far in any military action. there is no way that the president is going to go to the security council to try to get a resolution for its military action. but on the diplomatic side of things yes, he is going to go to the security council. because exactly two weeks f