Italian foreign minister arrives in Erbil

Karwan Faidhi Dri

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Italian foreign minister arrived in Kurdistan Region’s capital city of Erbil Thursday afternoon to visit his country’s troops and meet with Kurdish leadership. He invited the Region's President Nechirvan Barzani to Rome. 

Rome announced on Wednesday that its Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Luigi Di Maio would visit Kuwait and Iraq the next day “for meetings with local authorities and to greet Italian contingents at the Al Salem (Kuwait) and Camp Singara (Erbil) bases and the Italian soldiers of the Nato/Cjtf contingent (Baghdad).”

The minister arrived in Erbil on Thursday afternoon. He later met with President  Barzani, discussing the Region's relations with Italy as well as " emphasizing mutual interest to develop relations and broaden fields of cooperation, especially in terms of economy and culture," according to a readout from Barzani's office which stated that the latest Iraqi elections, the fight against terrorism, Erbil-Baghdad relations and the importance of the stability of the region were among issues discussed. 

The Italian minister invited President Barzani to Rome, added the readout. 

Italy is part of the US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS). Italian troops stationed in the Kurdistan Region have provided training for Peshmerga forces.   

Lorenzo Guerini, Italian defence minister, visited Kurdistan Region in September 2020, discussing the Region’s stability and ISIS with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani. “Kurdistan-Italy links grow from strength to strength and we now intend to build strong partnerships in trade and investment,” PM Barzani said in a tweet at the time.” 

The Kurdish premiere had visited Rome in February same year.