Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani today met with UK Government’s Security Envoy to the Kurdistan Region, Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall.

The President and the UK government’s security envoy discussed the military effort by the peshmerga forces against the ISIS terrorists and cooperation and assistance by the UK government to help the peshmerga forces in this fight.

General Mayall said that he is in Kurdistan on behalf of UK government to coordinate with the KRG on the supplies of humanitarian and military aid from the UK. He described the recent advances and gains made by the peshmerga forces as remarkable and said that together with the United States and other allies, they would continue to support the peshmerga forces. He also praised the role of peshmerga forces for risking and sacrificing their lives to protect Yezidi and Christian and other minorities in the battle zones.

President Barzani welcomed the decision by the UK Prime Minister to appoint a special security envoy to Kurdistan and extended his appreciation for the military and humanitarian support that the UK is offering to Kurdistan.

Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq (KRG.org) – Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani yesterday spoke to members of the press regarding security issues, response to the humanitarian crisis, the government formation process in Baghdad, and other matters following a meeting with Parliament Speaker Yousif Mohammed.

The Prime Minister met with the Speaker of Parliament to share a report about the displaced families from Sinjar and Christian villages, discuss ongoing negotiations with Baghdad, and review the current military situation. He said that he will continue to discuss matters related to Peshmerga forces and martyrs affairs with the Speaker.

Prime Minister Barzani told members of the press that the KRG had a bitter experience dealing with former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government, and said that he hoped past mistakes that led to the current crisis would not be repeated in the next cabinet. He indicated that a negotiating team from the Kurdistan Alliance has been established and that they have engaged in detailed preparatory meetings prior to visiting Baghdad.

The Prime Minister emphasised that the delegation will advocate government formation quickly, but the Kurdistan Region has its requests. He noted that these points are clear, including implementation of constitutional Article 140, allocation of a budget for Peshmerga forces, federal budget distribution in general, and matters regarding natural resources. It was decided that the negotiating team would discuss theses issues with Baghdad, with the understanding that they cannot be implemented in two weeks. All political parties of the team agreed on a deadline for the requests.

Prime Minister Barzani lauded the military and humanitarian assistance provided by the international community. “We are grateful to the countries supporting the Kurdistan Region in its fight against the terrorists,” he said, adding, “The issue of terror does not only concern the Kurdistan Regional Government. Rather, combating terror requires an international coalition, and we believe the international community has thus far taken good steps.”

The Prime Minister explained that actions taken have been supported by the United States and European countries militarily. This support began only recently, but nonetheless the KRG is grateful to all countries that have taken measures to support the Kurdistan Region. He noted that Kurdistan is at the forefront of the world’s fight against terrorism, and again underscored the need for regional and international coordination.

Answering questions about the displaced families and provision of humanitarian aid, Prime Minister Barzani said that the KRG is under tremendous pressure and sadly the KRG’s budget remains withheld by Baghdad. This has added to the burden on the Kurdistan Region in providing aid to the displaced.

Regarding Article 140, the Prime Minister pointed to the importance of adhering to the Constitution and its articles, stating that Article 140 paves the way for a solution. He added that the KRG wishes to resolve disputes legally, as per the Constitution, even if all such areas are under KRG control. At the same time, he said that “there are no guarantees” or assurances between Erbil and Baghdad, based on past experiences with the Maliki administration, noting that Baghdad still has not released salaries for civil servants working in the Kurdistan Region.

United States Vice President Joe Biden spoke with the Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani on Sunday to discuss security and political challenges facing Iraq.

The US Vice President praised the recent successes of the peshmerga forces against the ISIS terrorists and reiterated US government support for them. On the political process in Baghdad, he expressed his government’s hope that a new government can be formed on sound basis and one which can revive trust and can address all the challenges facing the country.

On 17 August 2014 Dr. Yusif Muhammad Sadiq, Kurdistan parliament president, visited the fronts of battle against ISIS in Khanaqin and Jalawla. Dr. Yusif said that the purpose of his visit is to learn about the needs of Peshmarga forces and to see the situation life of the refugees in the region as well. He thanked Peshmarga forces and promised that Kurdistan parliament tries to equalize their rights with the military forces in Baghdad.

The president of Kurdistan parliament also went to Khanaqin and visited a number of people of Kakais, another ethnic-religious group in Kurdistan, and asserted, “We do not allow ISIS to commit another crime here, and the tragedy happened to Yazidis and Christian in Shangal and Musil should not be repeated here”. He added that Kurdistan parliament is determined to pass some laws in order to protect ethnic and religious minorities in Kurdistan and to verify their civil rights completely”.

Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq (KRG.org) – Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani on Wednesday met the Governor of Duhok and administrative officials from the province to follow-up the situation of displaced people arriving from Sinjar, the Ninevah plains, and other areas.

The Governor of Duhok presented a summary of the situation of the internally displaced people (IDPs), most of whom are Yezidis, Christians, and members of other ethnic and religious minority communities from Sinjar and the Ninevah plains. The Governor noted that authorities and citizens in Duhok have done everything possible to assist the IDPs, but because of the vast number of displaced people, much more humanitarian aid is needed.

The Minister of Finance and Economy said that thus far only the KRG had shouldered the expenditures for assisting the displaced families, along with aid provided by the people of Kurdistan. He said that no other party had yet provided financial support. The Minister suggested that the situation would be dealt with as an exceptional circumstance in terms of regular financial guidelines, adding that the $15 million allocated by the Prime Minister had already reached the Duhok governorate.

Prime Minister Barzani emphasised that the KRG will continue to mobilise all efforts to support IDPs. He decided to allocate another $10 million in aid, in addition to the previous $15 million, to support the displaced people.

The Prime Minister pointed to the importance of meeting basic needs in the initial phases, to be followed by the provision of necessary services in camps to be built in some areas of the city. He conveyed his government’s gratitude for all the support and aid provided to the victims by the people of the Kurdistan Region and Kurds everywhere. He said that these loyal, patriotic, and humanitarian gestures are worthy of commendation.

The Minister of Planning presented a summary of the KRG’s coordinated efforts with international organisations assisting the government in providing aid to the IDPs. He said that the scale of the crisis has prompted many international humanitarian organisations to come to Kurdistan to help the displaced.

Prime Minister Barzani discussed the latest developments and highlighted the fact that the KRG has substantial international support. He stressed that the Peshmerga forces will defeat the terrorists and prevail with the arrival of required weapons and ammunition. However, the legacy of the barbaric acts committed by the terrorists will remain in the hearts of the victims of these areas and of the people of Kurdistan. Time, sensitivity, patience, and treatment are required in order to recover.

On 13th August 2014, Dr. Yusif Muhammad Sadiq, the president of Kurdistan parliament, received Clouya Ross, the deputy head of Germany parliament. In the meeting Dr. Yusif explained the late events of the region, the life condition of the refugees in Kurdistan after IS attacks, and the situation of Peshmarga forces in the fronts.

 Regarding the refugees, he said, “The refugees live in a very difficult situation. Since the Kurdish Regional government has not received its own share from Iraq budget in 2014, we cannot provide sufficient aid for the refugees. This is why we require urgent help from international community and humanitarian organizations”. Dr Yusif added, “What happened to Yezizis was another Holocaust; hundreds of thousands of innocent people died of lack of food and water”.

About Peshmarga forces Kurdistan parliament president clarified,” they can defend Kurdistan, but in the past Iraqi government did not support us to strengthen our military capacities. We really thank US and European countries for their prompt and significant cooperation with Peshmarga forces”.

On her part, the deputy head of Germany parliament said,” Germany is confident to support Kurdistan in fighting terrorists”. She also expressed her concern about the situation of Christian and Yezidis refugees in Shangal and Musil”.

About the relationship between KRG and Iraqi government, she said,” We are worried about the financial crisis in Kurdistan, and we hope that the Iraqi government sends back Kurdistan budget as soon as possible”.