French FM: France supports Kurdistan during peace
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – France’s Foreign and Defense Ministers on Saturday met with the Kurdistan Region President and other Kurdish officials in Erbil.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and Defense Minister Florence Parly arrived in Erbil to discuss the latest developments in the war against the Islamic State (IS) and bilateral relations between Erbil and Paris with senior Kurdistan Region officials.
Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani received the French delegation at the Presidency Palace in Pirmam, near Erbil.
President Barzani held a high-level meeting with the presence of top government and military officials from both sides.
According to a statement by the Kurdistan Region Presidency, “the meeting entailed several crucial subjects including the ongoing operations against the terrorists of the Islamic State and the issue of the Kurdistan Independence Referendum.”
The French ministers emphasized on the continuation of support from France to the Kurdistan Region and especially to the Peshmerga forces, the statement said.”
Peshmerga forces demonstrated to the world that they are very capable fighters whose role against the Islamic State (IS) was one of the major reasons we have achieved this many victories against the terrorists, French Ministers said according to the KRP statement.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian stated that France supported Kurdistan during war and will be with Kurdistan during peace, the statement added.
On his part, Barzani expressed his gratitude to the people and government of France and made reference to the support from France to the Kurdistan Region immediately after the brutal attack on Sinjar from the IS in August of 2014.
“Barzani repeated the position of the Kurdistan Region and stated that the Kurdistan experiences with Baghdad have repeatedly failed and that the people of Kurdistan are entitled to the right to voice their stance on independence,” the statement read.
Due to that, the President added, that we will hold the Kurdistan Independence Referendum as scheduled, on September 25, the statement concluded.
