French FM in Erbil for talks with Kurdish officials
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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot arrived in Erbil on Wednesday after concluding a visit to Baghdad for talks with top Kurdish officials.
The top diplomat was received by Safeen Dizayee, head of the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) department of foreign relations, and met Prime Minister Masrour Barzani later in the evening.
'The prime minister reiterated the Kurdistan Region's appreciation for the continued support of the French government and people, and emphasized the importance of developing bilateral relations in various fields,' a KRG statement said about their meeting. 'Both sides agreed on the need to form the new cabinet of the regional government in the near future.'
They also discussed Erbil-Baghdad ties and ongoing talks to resume Kurdish oil exports through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, according to the statement.
The French top diplomat is also set to meet with President Nechirvan Barzani, Rudaw has learned.
Barrot arrived in Baghdad on Wednesday on a regional tour and was received by his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein for talks on regional developments and security matters. The top diplomats also discussed France's role in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS), according to Hussein.
He later met with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani, where Baghdad-Paris bilateral ties were discussed.
During the meeting, Barrot 'conveyed President Emmanuel Macron's greetings to the Prime Minister and praised the government's achievements under his leadership, noting Iraq's transformation into a successful and attractive destination for investment, with improving security ratings,' Sudani's office said in a statement.
Barrot's visit to Baghdad is part of a regional tour to push for a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. He is also set to visit Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
France has been an active member in the US-led coalition against ISIS and has recently joined the Americans in their efforts to unite Syrian Kurds in northeast Syria (Rojava) through facilitating intra-Kurdish talks that have been stalled for years.
France and the Kurdistan Region enjoy long-standing ties, dating back to France's support for the post-Gulf War no-fly zone that enabled the Region's current autonomy. France was also among the first countries to open a consulate in Erbil after the fall of toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Earlier in April, Barzani met with Macron in Paris, where they discussed strengthening bilateral ties and regional developments, including in Iraq and Syria.
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