Iraqi Interior Minister, delegation arrive in Erbil for security talks

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s Interior Minister Yassin al-Yasiri arrived in Erbil on Wednesday evening, spearheading a high-level government delegation set to meet with his Kurdistan Region counterpart.

The trip marks Yasiri’s first visit to the autonomous Kurdish region since he formally took office in Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi’s government in late June.

The Kurdistan Region’s Interior Minister, Rebar Ahmad, along with other ministry officials, received Yasiri and his accompanying delegation at Erbil International Airport late in the day.

Yasiri’s delegation included officials in the federal government, directorates of nationality, passports, and borders, and airport and traffic security.

After their arrival, Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesperson Saad Maan told reporters that one of the topics that would be explored is “security cooperation,” among others. Maan also said the Kurdish and Iraqi ministries would discuss the state of the country’s borders, specifically with Syria.

The two sides will hold further talks on Thursday.

One unresolved issue is the Iraqi government’s approval of the formalization of many border crossings with Iran, which has already agreed to it from their side. Border officials from Baghdad are among the Iraqi delegation, which suggests this might be a topic of discussion.

Over the past few months, the new Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) cabinet has had several delegation visits and exchanges with the Federal Government of Iraq to find solutions to long-standing issues between the two sides within the framework of the Iraqi Constitution.

Ties between Erbil and Baghdad have significantly improved after being strained over the past few years following the Kurdistan Region’s historic independence referendum, which saw a landslide majority favor statehood.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany