interests of Western oil companies

"Nabb and other former Army officers use their contacts in the region to promote the interests of Western oil companies in what has become the Wild West of Kurdistan. More than 50 foreign oil companies now hustle to develop oil and gas. The ex-military men have become strong advocates for the Kurdish cause, calling for expanding US airstrikes and providing more sophisticated weapons to Kurdish peshmerga forces. They also back what they say may well emerge as an independent, pro-American, pro-business Kurdish state."