'A Significant Visit,' Timmerman Hails PM Barzani’s Trip to Washington

By Kamaran Aziz

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – As Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani prepares for a high-profile visit to Washington, D.C., U.S. politician and researcher Kenneth R. Timmerman has described the trip as “significant,” underscoring the deepening strategic bond between Washington and Erbil. Prime Minister Masrour Barzani’s visit to Washington, D.C.  marks the first by a non-Israeli Middle Eastern leader under the current administration—an indicator, Timmerman argues, of Kurdistan’s growing importance in U.S. foreign policy.

The Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Masrour Barzani, arrived in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, leading a high-level government delegation on an official visit.

During the visit, Prime Minister Barzani is scheduled to hold high-level meetings with senior officials from the U.S. administration and Congress. He will also engage with American investors, prominent figures in the economic sector, and advocates for international religious freedom.

The discussions will focus on strengthening and expanding the strategic partnership between the Kurdistan Region and the United States. Key topics will include bilateral cooperation, investment, recent political and security developments in Iraq, and broader regional dynamics in the Middle East.

As part of efforts to boost collaboration in the energy sector, Prime Minister Barzani will participate in a special session at an energy forum in Washington, D.C., titled “The Future of Energy and Power in the Kurdistan Region.” He will outline the Kurdistan Region’s vision for energy development and highlight opportunities for American companies in this vital sector.

“I think that's important. It is absolutely important, but don't forget, Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel has already come to Washington twice. So, Prime Minister Barzani is not the first leader from the Middle East, but he's the first non-Israeli leader to come to the White House. It's important. It is significant,” Timmerman said in a striking and wide-ranging interview with Kurdistan24. 

He expressed hope that this engagement would lead to deeper economic, diplomatic, and security cooperation between the two allies.

Timmerman issued a blunt warning about the dangers facing the Kurdistan Region while praising its strategic alignment with the United States. Speaking from Florida, the longtime advocate of Kurdish-American cooperation called for deeper economic and military collaboration between Washington and Erbil, and urged President Trump to back Kurdish aspirations against rising regional threats.

"Kurdistan has been a strategic ally of The United States really from 2003," Timmerman recalled, referencing the early collaboration between Kurdish and U.S. forces during the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

"Now I think the important thing, given President Trump's clear desire to commit diplomacy through trade, is to see what the Prime Minister has to offer President Trump in terms of trade relations. Will it be an oil deal on the table? Will it be a deal that is good for American companies? Will it be good for the United States of America? These are the things that Donald Trump thinks about putting America First. Can the prime minister of Kurdistan help America to put America First while helping Kurdistan?" he added.

For Timmerman, the answer lies in strategic pragmatism. He believes Kurdistan has much to offer and should leverage its resources and stability to forge new trade agreements, particularly in the energy sector. He also advocates for a more permanent U.S. presence in the region. “I would like to see a US military base in Erbil, an air force base in Erbil,” he declared, describing such a move as mutually beneficial.

But Timmerman did not shy away from warning about existential threats. "I have always said that the two biggest dangers that Iraqi Kurdistan, the Kurdistan region, faces are from Turkey on the one hand and Iran on the other," he warned.

While he acknowledged that Turkey appears to be pursuing diplomacy, including potential peace with the PKK, Iran remains, in his words, “the big wolf right at your doorstep.”

He recounted personal observations of Iranian military helicopters crossing into the Qandil Mountains to strike Kurdish positions inside Iraqi territory, condemning Tehran's repeated violations of sovereignty. "This is something that has to stop," Timmerman said flatly. "Right now, let's not forget, the main source of instability is the Iranian regime, is Tehran."

A seasoned observer of regional politics, Timmerman emphasized the long-standing nature of Kurdish-American relations, dating back to the 1990s, and solidified after Saddam’s fall. “This has been a long-standing relationship, and it's one that the U.S. has invested a lot of money in, a lot of time, many lives.”

He also pointed out that Washington sees the Kurdistan Region as a moderating force within Iraq—one that could model governance based on stability, pro-Western values, and resistance to radicalism. “The role of the KRG [...] is to show it is possible in The Middle East, in areas that have been plagued by radicalism, [...] by terrorism, it is possible to have an area in this region that is stable, that is moderate, that is pro Western, that is not beset by Islamic radicalism, and that can look towards the future and the prosperity of its citizens. I think that is the kind of partnership that President Trump would like to build.”

Timmerman believes that President Trump could favor Erbil over Baghdad in future disputes—especially in matters of oil exports and regional influence. “if I were to make a guess, I would say that president Trump would come out on the side of Erbil over Baghdad [...] Right now, Baghdad is being, has been infiltrated for years and years by Tehran, by the Iranian regime, so that's going to be the point of conflict.”

He cited efforts to reopen the Ceyhan pipeline for Kurdish oil exports to Europe via Turkey as a test case for U.S.-Kurdish cooperation. “[Prime Minister] Barzani has very good relations with the Turkish government, and that will help. And President Trump has very good personal relationships with President Erdogan. So I think that's the way that they would both like to go [...] but then they would have to get the agreement of Baghdad.”

The broader vision Timmerman laid out involves integrating the Kurdistan Region into a regional defense network against Iranian expansionism. While he acknowledged political constraints due to Iraq's federal structure, he stressed that long-term U.S. interests lie in seeing a unified, professional Peshmerga army and a Kurdish government that can contribute to collective regional security.

“I think the United States would like to see the Peshmerga as a united force, as a single force, not as party militias, but as a single government force, to express the will of the KRG government as a whole,” he said.

“I think also, they would like to see a, you know, a global or I should say a regional, air defense system. I'm not sure that they're ready yet to bring Kurdistan into that because of the relationship with Baghdad. Again, Baghdad is infiltrated by the Iranian regime, and that is a severe problem. But I think, ultimately, that would be the goal to see, the KRG as part of a regional alliance to defend the interests of freedom-loving countries against the Iranian regime,” he added.

Asked whether the Kurdistan Region could realistically seal its borders from Iranian infiltration, Timmerman responded with guarded optimism: “I hope your Prime Minister will ask for assistance from Washington to help seal the borders with Iran, so the Iranians can no longer infiltrate, can penetrate, and can do damage to, your citizens, inside the Kurdish region.”

Timmerman emphasized that peace and stability in Kurdistan are not merely regional concerns but strategic priorities for the United States. He noted that the Kurdish Region, as part of Iraq, is demonstrating that a moderate, non-radical, pro-Western polity can exist in the Middle East, adding that it is in America's interest to ensure that this continues.

For Kenneth R. Timmerman, the choice is clear: reinforce the U.S.-Kurdistan alliance, resist Iranian encroachment, and build an enduring partnership grounded in security, sovereignty, and shared prosperity.