Mikhail Bogdanov, Special Representative of the President of Russia for the Middle East and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, met with Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani. Both sides addressed the “importance of the Kurdistan Region and its historic relations with Moscow,” according to the statement from PM’s office.
“The Prime Minister expressed the Kurdistan Region’s will for stronger ties with Russia whilst they also talked about developments in Iraq, its relationship with Russia and also that between Erbil and Moscow,” it added.
Bogdanov also met with the head of the Region’s ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Masoud Barzani. In the meeting, they discussed the developments in Iraq following the October 10 parliamentary elections, according to a statement from Barzani’s office.
“The threats of terrorism on the stability of the region was discussed and both sides agreed that the reasons that lead to the emergence of terrorism need to be eliminated,” the statement added.
The Russian envoy also met with KRG deputy PM Qubad Talabani.
Pleasure to catch up with Russian DFM and Presidential Special Envoy for MENA Mikhail Bogdanov. We reaffirmed the historic friendship between our peoples and more cooperation.
— Masrour Barzani (@masrour_barzani) December 1, 2021
On Syria, we agreed on the need for an inclusive plan that addresses the rights of the Kurdish people. pic.twitter.com/31RhCIELMF
The Kurdistan Region and Russia enjoy good ties, especially in the energy sector.
Russian oil company Gazprom Neft began drilling an exploration well at the Shakal block in the Kurdistan Region in 2014.
Three years later, another Russian company, Rosneft signed a deal with the KRG to develop five oil blocks containing an estimated 670 million barrels of oil.
Gazprom Neft reaffirmed their interest in the KRG in November 2020, saying they “remain interested in the exploration of new development options in the region," their CEO for Exploration and Production Vadim Yakovlev was quoted as saying by Russia's Tass News Agency.
In meetings with Kurdish officials on Wednesday the situation of Kurds in Syria was one of the topics of discussion.
“Prime Minister Barzani reiterated the importance of solving the issues facing Kurds there. This, he said, should be done in a way that represents all Kurdish parties in Syria,” the statement from the PM’s office read.
Russia is a key backer of President Bashar al-Assad. Turkey and its proxies control stretches of northern Syria, including parts of the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib, as well as areas around Sari Kani (Ras al-Ain) and Gire Spi (Tel Abyad) in the northeast that Turkey seized from Kurdish forces in a 2019 offensive. Ceasefires were brokered by Moscow and Washington, but are frequently violated.
Russia’s ambassador to Iraq in October said that his country is trying to mediate between Kurds and Damascus. “We are now facilitating negotiation process between SDF, Rojava, and the Syrian government. It is not an easy thing to be done,” Elbrus Kutrashev said.
