Masoud Barzani, Jordan King underline historic ties on sidelines of WEF

The leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Masoud Barzani on Sunday met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on the Middle East and North Africa.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Masoud Barzani, met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Sunday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on the Middle East and North Africa.

The two discussed “the historic ties” between the Kurdistan Region and Jordan, highlighting “economic relations,” a statement from Barzani’s office read.

King Abdullah reaffirmed his kingdom’s “continued cooperation and coordination” with the Region on the “fight against terror and extremism,” it added.

Barzani arrived in Amman on Friday and was welcomed by the King’s brother, Crown Prince Faisal bin Hussein. The Kurdish leader was accompanied by a delegation comprised of leading KDP member Fazil Mirani and Falah Mustafa, a senior official in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

The King highlighted improving ties between Erbil and Baghdad, stating both sides settling differences “is in the interest of everyone,” the Sunday statement noted.

Relations between the central government in Baghdad and the KRG reached a near-total breakdown in late 2017 after the Kurdistan Region’s vote for independence from Iraq. Both sides have worked to hash out differences since then, a process which accelerated after a new Iraqi prime minister took his post in early October.

On Saturday, Barzani attended the opening of the forum, which took place at the Dead Sea with the official slogan “committed to improving the state of the world.” This marks the 17th conference of the sort and the 10th time it is held in Jordan, a country largely untouched by the instability of its neighbors.

Close to 1,000 government, business, and civil society leaders from over 50 countries were expected to attend the forum, according to a WEF report in September.

Some key topics the event explored were the modernization of industry, entrepreneurship, female participation rate in the workforce, and sustainability.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany