President Barzani to lead high-level delegation, discuss referendum in Brussels

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – The President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani will soon travel to Brussels to discuss the Kurdistan Region's referendum on independence with European countries, said a Kurdish official on Saturday.

President Barzani met with the Referendum High Committee members in Erbil to discuss practical steps to tackle the referendum scheduled for Sep. 25, 2017.

Hemin Hawrami, a senior adviser to President Barzani, stated on his Twitter account that Barzani would soon head a delegation to discuss the independence referendum with European officials in Brussels.

President Barzani will lead a delegation from Kurdistan soon 2discuss Referandum, Regional politics, post ISIS w/ European leaders in Brusls

— Hemin Hawrami (@heminhawrami) July 8, 2017

Following the meeting on Saturday, the members decided to form three subcommittees to discuss the independence move with Baghdad, neighboring countries like Iran and Turkey as well as European nations and the US.

Kurds are believed to be the largest stateless nation with roughly 40 million people mostly residing in Turkey, Iraq, Syria, and Iran. Almost all Kurds around the world share the same aspiration for an independent Kurdish state.

The vote on independence is only for the people living in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, not the other parts of the Greater Kurdistan, Kurdish officials have previously stated.

“The people of the Kurdistan Region have the right to decide on their future,” Barzani has expressed. “The referendum is a democratic exercise and the West should not stand against their values and the principles of democracy.”

Editing by G.H. Renaud