AP
Ankara will take "all measures" under international law if the Iraqi Kurdish independence referendum being held on Monday generates threats to Turkey's national security, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.
In a written statement it said it did not recognize the referendum and would view its outcome as null and void, adding that the Iraqi Kurdish government was threatening the peace and stability of Iraq and the whole region.
In a separate travel warning, the ministry said it strongly recommended that Turkish citizens in the Iraqi Kurdish provinces of Dohuk, Erbil and Sulaimaniya should leave as soon as possible if they are not obliged to stay.
Iraqi Kurds began voting on Monday in a historic independence referendum despite the opposition of Baghdad and neighboring states.
The vote, initiated by veteran leader Masoud Barzani, is being held across the three northern provinces of autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan, Arbil, Sulaimaniyah and Dohuk, as well as in disputed bordering zones such as the oil-rich province of Kirkuk.