BAGHDAD — Kirkuk is largely calm on Tuesday. So too are the towns and cities of Diyala (with the exception of Khanaqin) which, while not so much in the limelight, were also lost by the Kurdish peshmerga last week as forces controlled by the Iraqi central government advanced. The question asked by many Kurds and those who have engaged with Kurdish officials over the years is why the peshmerga proved so ineffective and/or stood down without firing a shot.

There are several reasons, but they all boil down to one overarching issue: The Kurds have for too long valued public relations over reality.