PM Barzani Meets with Key Congressmen

WASHINGTON DC, United States (Kurdistan 24) – On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Masrour Barzani, met with key leaders in the U.S. Congress.

On Tuesday, he saw the Democratic Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), Jack Reed (Rhode Island), along with the top Republican, Roger Wicker (Mississippi.)

On Wednesday, Barzani met with two senators who have been long-time friends of the Kurds: Tammy Duckworth (D, Ill), a veteran of the 2003 war that overthrew Saddam Hussein, and Lindsey Graham (R, South Carolina.)

He also saw Rep. Don Bacon (R, Nebraska) another Iraq war veteran and, like Duckworth, a friend of the Kurds from that time.

Barzani’s meetings with members of the U.S. Congress followed his first day of business in Washington. On Monday, he held a series of meetings with senior officials at the State Department, starting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Those meetings were summarized in a very positive statement from State Department Spokesperson, Matthew Miller

Read More: State Dept. Hails Meeting between Blinken and Barzani

Senate Armed Service Committee

On Tuesday, Barzani met with Sen. Jack Reed (D, Rhode Island), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), and Sen. Roger Wicker (R, Mississippi), the committee’s top Republican. 

In 2017, as head of the Kurdistan Region Security Council, Barzani also met with the SASC’s leaders—the late Sen. John McCain (R, Arizona), then the committee’s chairman, and Reed, who was the ranking Democrat.

Read More: John McCain to Masrour Barzani: You can count on our friendship

In 2017, both senators expressed strong support for the Kurdistan Region, and the same was true seven years later, as Barzani met with the SASC leadership. 

Tuesday’s discussion with the committee leaders “underscored the mutual commitment to maintaining peace, security, and stability in the Kurdistan Region,” according to a read-out provided by Barzani’s office.

“Chairman Reed commended the resilience and sacrifices of the Peshmerga forces and the Kurdish people, " it explained, while the discussion also highlighted “the ongoing United States and international coalition support for the Peshmerga forces.”

Barzani, for his part, “thanked the United States for its steadfast support and underscored the importance of acknowledging the Kurdistan Region’s constitutional and federal status within Iraq.”

Sen. Tammy Duckworth

Duckworth serves on the SASC, as well as the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.

In his meeting with Duckworth, Barzani “provided a concise overview of the overall situation in Iraq, emphasizing the crucial need to address issues between the Kurdistan region and the federal government,” resolving matters like: financial entitlements; the regional budget; resuming Kurdish oil exports; ensuring peace and security in the Kurdistan Region; and safeguarding the rights of its diverse religious and ethnic groups,” the read-out from Barzani’s office explained.

For her part, Duckworth “reaffirmed her unwavering support for the Kurdistan Region, emphasizing her commitment to safeguarding the region and facilitating the resolution of issues between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government,” it added.

During Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), Duckworth served as the pilot of an Army helicopter. In 2004, she was seriously injured, losing both her legs, when an RPG, fired by Sunni insurgents, brought down her helicopter. 

In 2019, Duckworth led a Senate fact-finding mission to Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region. It was her first visit to Iraq since 2004, and she returned to the U.S. with the highest praise for what the Kurds had achieved in the intervening 15 years.

“I think what the Kurds have been able to do,”she said, “sets an example” for the rest of Iraq, she said.

“When I used to go up to the Kurdish Region, there was one fancy hotel on top of a hill and that was it,” she continued, recalling the early days of OIF. “We landed on a hillside and parked our helicopters and walked up to the one hotel.”

Now, there are “high-rises, it’s gleaming, it’s modern”—in sum “an international cosmopolitan city,” as she described Erbil, contrasting it with Baghdad, which had experienced nothing similar to such change.

Read More: Sen. Duckworth: Kurdistan is model for Iraq; ISIS not defeated

Sen. Lindsey Graham

After meeting with Duckworth, Barzani saw Sen. Lindsey Graham (R, South Carolina.) The discussion was similar to that with Duckworth.

The senator “expressed his aspirations for a stronger Kurdistan and reiterated his backing for the Kurdish people's legitimate demands and rights,” the read-out from Barzani’s office stated, including “their financial entitlements and rightful budget share; the importance of maintaining regional stability and security; the necessity to resume oil exports; and recognition of the Kurdistan Region's constitutional status within Iraq.”

Like Duckworth, Graham is another long-term friend of the Kurds. In 2017, as the war against ISIS was still a very active conflict, Graham advised Kurdistan 24 that the U.S. should be providing more arms to the Peshmerga. At the same time, Graham expressed a prescient concern about Iran’s “unhealthy influence” in Baghdad.

Read More: Sen. Lindsey Graham: Peshmerga need more weapons

Rep. Don Bacon 

Rep. Bacon (R, Nebraska) is, like Duckworth, a veteran of OIF. Bacon served for 30 years in the Air Force, rising to the rank of Brigadier General. He deployed four times to the Middle East, including to Iraq from 2007 to 2008, and his support for the Kurds goes back to that time. 

Bacon serves on the House Armed Services Committee and last June, he met with the KRG Interior Minister, Rebar Ahmed, as he visited Washington.

Read More: KRG Interior Minister Meets with House Armed Services Committee Members

Late on Wednesday afternoon, following his meeting with Bacon, Barzani tweeted, “The KRI-US relationship has deepened enormously in the last decade. Congressman  @RepDonBacon and others have been central to those efforts, and we look forward to doing more together.”

The KRI-US relationship has deepened enormously in the last decade. Congressman @RepDonBacon and others have been central to those efforts, and we look forward to doing more together. pic.twitter.com/QD7KXCg8CU

— Masrour Barzani (@masrourbarzani) February 28, 2024