KRG Foreign Relations head, US security coordinator McGurk address Erbil-Baghdad ties

“Expressed our gratitude for US support of the KRG and ongoing cooperation with Baghdad,” McGurk added.

Kurdistan 24 2023/09/22 20:06

KRG Foreign Relations head Safeen Dizayee (second from right) during his meeting with Brett McGurk, White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, Sept. 21, 2023. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)

Kurdistan Brett McGurk Safeen Dizayee Treefa Aziz Erbil-Baghdad relations UN General Assembly

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Safeen Dizayee, the head of the Department of Foreign Relations of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), on Thursday met with Brett McGurk, White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

“Good to catch up with my friend Brett McGurk on the sidelines of #UNGA78 in New York today,” Dizayee said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Expressed our gratitude for US support of the KRG and ongoing cooperation with Baghdad,” he added.

Good to catch up with my friend Brett McGurk on the sidelines of #UNGA78 in New York today. Expressed our gratitude for US support of the KRG and ongoing cooperation with Baghdad. pic.twitter.com/CpkTODSfZr
— Safeen Dizayee (@SafeenDizayee) September 21, 2023

Notably, McGurk was the Obama administration’s presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS from 2015 to 2018. He had worked extensively with the KRG in overseeing efforts to rid the terror group from Iraq. McGurk assumed his current position under the Biden administration in Jan. 2021.

Treefa Aziz, the KRG Representative to the United States, also attended the meeting.

“Productive meeting today. US remains a strong supporter of the KRG and the Kurdish people,” Aziz wrote on X.

Productive meeting today. US remains a strong supporter of the KRG and the Kurdish people. https://t.co/RjmZFo4Wko
— TREEFA AZIZ (@treefa_aziz) September 21, 2023

Previously, Dizayee told Kurdistan 24 correspondent Issa Chomani that the US stresses the resumption of Kurdistan Region oil.

The UN General Assembly, held from Sep. 19 until Sept. 26, focuses on issues such as climate change, poverty, conflict, and inequality. It will also provide an opportunity to discuss global cooperation and the pathways forward for the UN.