August 30, 2023. Balkan Periscope - Hellas
Erbil
A
cross-party delegation of Canadian MPs led by Tomasz Kmiec is currently
visiting the Kurdistan Region, where they plan to meet with several Kurdish
officials and parliament members.
On Tuesday, the delegation met with Safeen Dizayee, Head of the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Department of Foreign Relations.
“During our
discussions on past events and current developments, I emphasized [the] KRG's
open-door policy aimed at strengthening our bilateral ties. We agreed on the
importance of furthering cooperation in key fields,” Dizayee posted on the
social platform X, previously known as Twitter.
The delegation
also met with Kurdistan Region Minister of Interior Reber Ahmed and the
Ministry of Peshmerga.
"Canadian support to the Peshmerga forces and coordination between the two sides in various fields were discussed," the Ministry of Peshmerga said.
“This is a
historic first ever visit by a Canadian parliamentary delegation to Kurdistan.
The parliamentary friends of the Kurds is an all-party group in Canada
dedicated to deepening our relations with all of Kurdistan,” MP Tomasz Kmiec
told Kurdistan 24.
“Our goals on this visit are to learn about the government and parliamentary processes in the KRI (Kurdistan Region of Iraq), deepen our understanding of the political culture of all Kurdish parties, and wherever possible to encourage cooperation towards a common goal; a freer, better and a more united Kurdistan.”
Kmiec is
the founder and co-chair of the Canadian Parliamentary Friends of the Kurds,
created in 2016, an all-party caucus dedicated to cultivating dialogue and
fostering parliamentary ties with Kurds from all parts of Kurdistan.
Previously
on Aug. 13, KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani met with outgoing Canadian
Ambassador to Iraq Gregory Galligan, in
addition to his replacement, Tammy Ames, where they discussed holding
parliamentary elections on time, resolving the outstanding issues between Erbil
and Baghdad as well as guaranteeing the constitutional rights of KRI’s
residents, among other issues.
Kurdistan24