French Foreign Minister Set to Visit Erbil After Damascus and Baghdad
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot to launch a regional tour on Feb. 5, including Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon, and is expected to visit Erbil to discuss stability, cooperation, and the fight against ISIS.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - From the corridors of Damascus to the halls of Baghdad, a new diplomatic route now points toward Erbil, as France’s top diplomat prepares to place the Kurdistan Region at the heart of a regional tour shaped by security, cooperation, and political guarantees.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot began a diplomatic tour of the Middle East on Wednesday, according to Pascal Confavreux, spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The regional visit includes Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon.
AFP reported that, as part of his visit to Iraq, the French minister is expected to travel to Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, where he will meet with senior officials.
Confavreux said the main objective of Barrot’s Iraq visit is to strengthen cooperation with the federal authorities in Baghdad and, in particular, with the Kurdistan Region. In Erbil, the French minister intends to hold discussions on consolidating regional stability and ensuring the continuity of the fight against the terrorist organization ISIS.
One of the key issues expected to be raised during meetings in Erbil and Baghdad is the case of ISIS fighters of French origin who were previously transferred from Syria to detention facilities in Iraq and are awaiting trial.
Barrot’s first stop on the tour is Damascus, where he is meeting with his Syrian counterpart, Asaad al-Shaibani. France, which considers itself a guarantor for the protection of Kurdish rights since the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, is pressing for the full implementation of the agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Damascus government.
Paris places significant importance on the recognition of Kurdish institutions within the new Syrian state and on Kurds assuming a central political role in the country’s new framework.
The French foreign minister is scheduled to arrive in Beirut on Friday. There, he will discuss the Lebanese government’s plan to disarm Hezbollah, as well as preparations for the Paris conference to support the Lebanese army, which is set to be held in March.
As Jean-Noel Barrot’s tour advances from capital to capital, Erbil emerges as a pivotal stop in France’s renewed regional engagement, linking security, diplomacy, and the Kurdish question at the center of Middle Eastern dialogue.