PM Barzani receives US ambassador to Iraq

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masrour Barzani, discussed ways of strengthening bilateral ties with the United States in a meeting with the US ambassador to Iraq, Matthew H. Tueller.

In the meeting on Wednesday, Barzani and Tueller discussed the latest developments in Iraq and US support for the autonomous Kurdistan Region.

The American envoy emphasized his country's support for the Kurdistan Region in confronting terrorism and thanked the security services for their experience and skill in dealing with the Feb. 15 rocket attack in Erbil, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said.

Two rockets fell inside the Erbil International Airport grounds on Feb. 15 in an apparent attack on the Kurdistan Region’s capital. A civilian contractor working for the US-led coalition was killed, and a US service member was among those injured. A third rocket fell on a busy street in the Bakhtyari neighborhood about 2 kilometers south of the airport. A second man, also a civilian, died of his injuries almost a week later.

Read More: Several rockets land outside Erbil International Airport in late night attack

The American ambassador referred to the important and strategic location of the Kurdistan Region, an ally of the United States in the Middle East, saying "we hope that in coordination between the federal government and the regional government, the perpetrators of the terrorist attack will be held responsible, and receive a just judgment,” the KRG said.

On his side, the Prime Minister thanked the United States and the coalition forces and stressed that the Kurdistan Region will remain, as it was, an important factor of security and stability in the wider region.

Editing by Joanne Stocker-Kelly