ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani on Wednesday received a letter from US President Joe Biden, reiterating the key role the Kurdistan Region plays as a partner to the US and expressing the administration’s commitment to peace and stability in the Region and Iraq.
The letter was delivered by US Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller, according to a statement from the presidency’s office, adding that in the letter “America’s support of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region was reiterated”.
In the letter, Biden condemned the recent missile attack by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Erbil, while also stressing that a prosperous Kurdistan Region was an essential element of stability in Iraq.
Tueller met with President Barzani in Erbil on Wednesday to discuss peace and stability in the Kurdistan Region, the nuclear talks in Vienna, and the ongoing Iraqi political process.
Washington has maintained a solid relationship with the Kurdistan Region and Iraq. The US provides millions of dollars of aid to Kurdish Peshmerga forces, a key ally in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS).
The letter comes two days after President Biden requested over $500 million from the 2023 budget for the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
Out of the $773 billion budget, Biden proposed $541 million for forces in Iraq and Syria, according to details of the budget request published by the US Department of Defense.
The Kurdistan Region’s Peshmerga forces are considered part of the Iraqi forces and have received weapons, salaries, training, and equipment from the US.
The US coalition’s combat mission in Iraq ended in December but continues in Syria. The force continues its advisory mission with the Iraqi and Peshmerga forces.
The new budget request for 2023 is an increase of around $58 billion from 2022.
The amount dedicated to the fight against ISIS has risen by $19 million compared to the year before as ISIS still remains a threat in the region.
As part of its diplomatic mission in the area, the US announced the building of the new consulate in Erbil in 2017, which is the “biggest” consulate in the world, according to Consul General Robert Palladino.
The US initially opened a diplomatic office in Erbil in February 2007, which was later upgraded to a consulate general in 2011.
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