ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the historical background and the current changing situation of the disputed territories in Iraq. The legal process to decide the fate of the disputed territories between the Iraqi government and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) made under the constitution failed in 2007 and the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) mediation plan also did not work well. The biggest problem caused by this stalemate was security. The lack of coordination between the Iraqi Army and the Peshmerga resulted in ineffective anti-terror measures, which led to assault by the Islamic State (IS) in 2014. Even though IS was defeated in the following years, the war against IS made the territorial control of the disputed territories more complicated. What could have been needed to settle the issue was the sincere political effort for the agreement rather than repeated attempts to change the status quo through force.
