Iraq
Newly-appointed UK ambassador to Iraq, Stephen Hitchen, meets with Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani in Erbil on August 8, 2023. Photo: Office of the President
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Kingdom’s newly appointed ambassador to Iraq on Tuesday met with the Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani and Prime Minister Masrour Barzani in Erbil, in what was the top diplomat’s first visit to the Kurdistan Region’s capital.
Stephen Hitchen, who presented his credentials to the Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid to start his duty as London’s ambassador to Baghdad last month, met the Region’s leaders and discussed Erbil-Baghdad relations, recent developments, and the upcoming presidential elections.
“Both sides discussed the Erbil-Baghdad relations, the internal situation in Kurdistan Region, the next Kurdistan [Region] parliament’s next elections, the opportunities and challenges ahead of Iraq in terms of security, economy, and institutions,” read the statement from the Kurdistan Region presidency adding that both sides stressed the importance of seizing the opportunities for the benefit of the country.
President Barzani congratulated Hitchen for his appointment and wished him success and expressed his full support for the success of his mission in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.
PM Barzani also met with the ambassador also expressed his congratulations and expressed the support of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to improve the historic relations between the Region and Great Britain.
Both sides discussed “The reforms of the ninth cabinet, especially reforms in the Peshmerga ministry and the importance of resolving the issues between the federal governments and ensuring the constitutional rights of the people of Kurdistan and the importance of holding the parliamentary elections in its specified time,” according to the statement from PM Barzani’s office.
The meetings were also attended by the UK’s Consul General in Erbil, Rosy Cave.
The UK has been a major ally to the Kurdistan Region throughout the years, also playing a key role in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). It has also helped train the Peshmerga and is part of a team of international allies working on major reforms of the forces’ ministry.
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