London, UK (UK.KRG.org) - Britain and Kurdistan Region have a partnership that should be nurtured, was the message of Kurdistan Regional Government Minister Falah Mustafa during an official visit to the UK last week.

Minister Mustafa, Head of the Department of Foreign Relations, who was accompanied by Siham Mamand, Assistant Head of the DFR, and Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, the KRG High Representative to the UK, met officials, members of the opposition, parliamentarians, journalists and think tanks to deliver the message.

In a meeting with Hugh Robertson, the UK's Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Mr Mustafa said, 'We view our relationship with Britain as a partnership of choice, in education, culture, politics and economics. And we want to broaden the areas of cooperation.'

Minister Mustafa called for direct flights between the two countries and more regular visits by ministers on both sides.

During the meeting, the ministers discussed the forthcoming Iraq-wide elections which are scheduled to take place on April 30. Minister Mustafa said it was important that countries like the UK, which have a history in Iraq, continue to support timely elections and the neutrality and authority of the Independent High Electoral Commission.

They also discussed the current political crisis between Baghdad and Erbil and the rise in violence in Anbar which has led to 30,000 people fleeing from there to Kurdistan. This is in addition to the 260,000 Syrian refugees who have taken shelter in the region.

The ministers discussed the problems in Syria and the need to provide aid to people inside the country as well as refugees in neighbouring countries.

The two ministers later made keynote speeches at a ceremony organised by the KRG UK Representation and the Kurdish community to honour those who were killed in the Anfal genocide campaign.

Anfal was an eight-stage killing operation organised by Saddam Hussein's regime that  killed 182,000 people in 1988. This was the peak of a decades-long genocide against the Kurds who are now calling for Britain and other countries to recognise it.

Minister Robertson said at the ceremony, 'There is no doubt that Iraq’s Kurds suffered a terrible injustice under Saddam Hussein. It is important that we reflect on the suffering caused, extend our sympathy to all those affected and reaffirm our belief that no group should be allowed to suffer that fate again.'

This was the first time that a British minister had attended such a ceremony and its significance was acknowledged by Minister Mustafa who said, 'It is a compassionate gesture and one that carries huge significance for the people of Kurdistan as we continue in our struggle for recognition of the Kurdish genocide and the 182,000 lives lost to it.'

At the ceremony, High Representative Abdul Rahman, said, ‘The world must learn the lesson of the Kurdish genocide which is that dictators have to be stopped. Failing to tackle dictators only emboldens their greed and violence.'