There is ‘vibrant community of business links’ between UK and KRG, says envoy

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – The newly elected United Kingdom (UK) Consul General, James Goldman, told Kurdistan24 on Thursday that there is a "vibrant community of business links" between the UK and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

"It's something that we're really keen to support within the consulate," the Consul General added and noted, "There are lots of links, whether it's trade flowing between the UK and the KRI [Kurdistan Region of Iraq], but also investment as well."

Goldman also revealed that in his first week in office, he visited the British International University, a "quite sizable multi-million-pound investment from the UK into the KRI."

"Last week, I hosted a round table with businesses in the KRI who have a British link and heard about all the work that they're doing, so I think there's a huge amount of potential, and I'm looking forward to promoting those links between businesses," he stated.

Goldman was appointed as the new head of the diplomatic mission in Erbil on Jan. 22.

Read More: New UK Consul General appointed to the Kurdistan Region

London and Erbil enjoy close diplomatic and economic ties. Nearly 200 British companies currently work in the Kurdistan Region in various fields.

As an integral part of the Coalition against ISIS, the UK has provided training and air support to the Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the fight against the terror group, whose caliphate was toppled in 2017.