‘Israel would be first to recognize independent Kurdistan’

WASHINGTON, United States (Kurdistan24) – An Israeli official in the United States said that Israel would be one of the first countries to recognize a Kurdish state once Kurds declare independence.

During an interview with Kurdistan24, Reuven Azar, the Israeli Deputy Head of Mission in the US, discussed Israel’s relationship with the Kurdistan Region, the situation in Syria, and the state of the Middle East.

“We [Israel] think that the Kurdish people have shown throughout the history that they are interested [in achieving] the same goals that Israel is, which is prosperity for their people,” he stated.

According to Azar, Kurds are able to take the next step and become an independent nation.

“[Kurds] are ready, like the Israeli’s are, to fight for life, not to celebrate death, but to fight for life,” he said.

“We face similar threats, and we face similar challenges, and have similar opportunities because we have the advantage of being able to prosper during times of peace,” he added.

The Israeli official also stated that Israel’s relationship with Kurdistan is a “natural alliance” and that the two share the same values.

“We are interested in what’s most important for us which is the values of life, freedom, and independence,” he said. “Therefore, Israeli’s respect the Kurdish people.”

Azar pointed to Israel’s role of “stability” in the Middle East and specifically their interest in the Syrian conflict.

“Whoever wants to achieve stability finds in Israel a trusted ally. In that regard, Israel is interested in stability in Syria as well,” he explained.

The Deputy Head also touched upon the general situation in the Middle East pointing to unity as the key to bringing peace to the region.

“If we unite, all the people that want to fight for life, against extremism, I think we can achieve a stable Middle East,” Azar concluded.

(Kurdistan24 team in Washington, DC conducted the interview)