Prime Minister Visit to Europe

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani began his visit to Europe with a stop in Ankara, Turkey, where he had a meeting with the Deputy Foreign Minister on October 21. The two discussed the current situation in the region as well as relations between Turkey and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) during their cordial meeting.

From Turkey, he travelled to Sweden, where Mr. Barzani met with high-level Swedish government officials. The Prime Minister of Sweden, Mr. Goran Persson, received the Prime Minister and his accompanying delegation at the Parliament Building on October 25. During the welcoming ceremony, the Swedish Prime Minister expressed his pleasure to be receiving this important delegation from Kurdistan and his interest in hearing about the latest political developments and current events in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The KRG Prime Minister gave an overview of the situation in the region and the democratic experiment in Kurdistan. He stressed the importance of international support and backing for the democratic experiment in Kurdistan. The Swedish Prime Minister promised Prime Minister Barzani that Sweden would continue to assist the people of Kurdistan and continue backing the Kurdish experiment through the United Nations.

That evening, the KRG Nordic Representative hosted a reception in honor of the visiting delegation attended by foreign mission representatives, Swedish Foreign Ministry officials, Swedish Members of Parliament, academics, and members of the local Kurdish and Assyrian communities.

On October 26, Prime Minister Barzani and his delegation met with Ms. Anna Lindh, Foreign Minister of Sweden, and her team. Mr. Barzani raised a number of issues including sanctions on Iraq, the Oil-for-Food program, and the development of democratic institutions in Kurdistan. He praised Ms. Lindh for her stand and valuable comments in the Swedish Parliament in May this year. The KRG PM also touched on the peace process and the Washington Agreement as well as the causes of migration. During the talks, Mr. Barzani also remarked on the excellent work being done by the Swedish NGOs, Diaconia and Qandil.

The Swedish Foreign Minister reaffirmed her political and humanitarian support for Iraqi Kurdistan. She also said that it is the duty of the UN Security Council to have a mechanism in place for the protection of Iraqi Kurdistan prior to the lifting of sanctions on Iraq.

Later on the 26th, Prime Minister Barzani met with Carl Tham, Secretary-General of the Olof Palme International Centre, a think tank in Sweden that specializes in international development and cooperation issues. Mr. Barzani thanked Mr. Tham for the meeting organized at the centre named after Olof Palme, a great supporter of and friend to the Kurds.

Prime Minister Barzani and his delegation also attended a gathering of Kurds from around the Nordic region.

The delegation has completed its visit to Sweden and is heading on to other European countries.

Top