Russia says Iraqi Kurds must act in concert with Baghdad

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia respects the desire of Iraqi Kurdistan to assert its identity but this must be done in dialogue with the Iraqi government, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday at talks with his Iraqi government counterpart.

Relations between Iraqi Kurdistan and the central government in Baghdad have been in crisis since the region held an independence referendum last month. The Iraqi military took back the oil-rich Kirkuk area from Kurdish forces last week.