Iraqi president conducts his first official visit to Kurdistan Region

Ending over a year-long political deadlock, the Iraqi official was elected as the president in October.

Kurdistan 24 2022/11/15 13:46

Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani (right) recieves his Iraqi counterpart President Latif Rasheed in the capital Erbil, Nov. 15, 2022. (Photo: Kurdistan Region Presidency)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi President Latif Rasheed on Tuesday landed in the Kurdistan Region capital Erbil to begin his first official visit to the country’s Kurdish region.

President Nechirvan Barzani received his Iraqi counterpart at Erbil International Airport, where Rasheed was greeted by top officials from the Region.

The presidents discussed the lingering issues between Erbil and Baghdad as well as other challenges facing the country, according to Barzani.

“I reiterated my commitment to resolving outstanding issues between the Kurdistan Region and Baghdad,” the Kurdish president said in a tweet, adding he had reiterated his support for Rasheed’s efforts to address other issues facing Iraq.

During his stay, the newly elected Iraqi president is set to meet with President Masoud Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) as well as Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, per his agenda.

Rasheed is also expected to attend the American University of Kurdistan (AUK)’s annual Middle East Peace and Security (MEPS) Forum on Thursday, the conference’s program noted.

Ending over a year-long political deadlock, the Iraqi official was elected as the president in October.

I’m delighted to receive Dr @LJRashid, on his 1st visit to Erbil as the president of Iraq. I reiterated my commitment to resolving outstanding issues between the Kurdistan Region and Baghdad, and reaffirmed my support to President’s efforts in addressing issues facing the country pic.twitter.com/gUihTsYGXW
— Nechirvan Barzani (@IKRPresident) November 15, 2022

As an independent Kurdish candidate, Rasheed defeated his Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)’s rival Barham Salih, the former Iraqi president.

The President-elect was born in 1944 in Sulaimani province. He is married to Shanaz Ibrahim Ahmed, a top PUK official. They have two sons and a daughter.

Rasheed had an active role in the Iraqi opposition front fighting against the former regime of Saddam Hussein. He was a member of the Iraqi National Congress.

A graduate of civil engineering, Rasheed obtained his Master's degree and Ph.D. in the United Kingdom in Hydraulic Engineering.