U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region for crisis talks with Kurdish leaders.

He's here to urge Kurdish President Massoud Barzani to work with Baghdad to fight a Sunni insurgency by ISIL fighters that threatens the country.

Washington is hoping a new, more inclusive government --- one representing the country's Shia, Sunni and Kurd population --- will undermine the insurgency.

SOUNDBITE: U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE, JOHN KERRY SAYING:

"In recent days the security cooperation between the forces here in the Kurdish area has been really critical in helping to draw a line with respect to ISIL and also to provide some support to the Iraqi security forces."

While Kurdish forces have helped stabilize parts of the country, some worry that Kurdistan, which has a population of five million people, will seek independence from Iraq --- leaving Baghdad to battle insurgents by itself.

This is Kerry's first visit to Arbil, the c