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The State Department on Tuesday declined to criticize the Iraqi central government for partnering with Iran in a fight against an ethnic minority seeking to separate from the rest of the country.

"We continue to call for calm," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters on Tuesday.

"The United States is very concerned by reports of violence around Kirkuk, Iraq. We are monitoring the situation closely and call on all parties to coordinate military activities and restore calm," Nauert said.

"We're not taking sides," Heather Nauert said in a statement.

The United States is trying to get its allies in Iraq to stay focused on ISIS, but as the extremist group is now close to defeat in the country, both sides are concerned about where lines will be drawn over territory formerly held by the group.

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