UK MPs, academics arrive in Erbil to discuss Kurdistan-Britain ties

“Historically, of course, the Kurds continue to be British allies, and they have been for many years.”

Mustafa Shilani 2019/09/16 18:24

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A delegation of United Kingdom parliamentarians and academic researchers met on Monday with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) head of Department of Foreign Relations (DFR), Safeen Dizayee, to strengthen British-Kurdish ties and fortify bilateral relations.

MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle, who headed the British delegation, spoke to Kurdistan 24 following their meeting with the KRG official.

Russell-Moyle said the UK wants to continue to “support the work of the KRG, the regional government, and make sure that Britain and the Kurdish people are working closely together because we have a great interest in promoting what is one of the few democratic areas in the region.”

“Historically, of course, the Kurds continue to be British allies, and they have been for many years,” he added.

Britain wants to make sure “the Iraqi Constitution is being upheld, that the monies are flowing to Kurdistan, and development is happening,” he added. “We have an interest in making sure that that happens, and that peace is secured.”

Russell-Moyle also praised the role of the Kurdistan Region’s Peshmerga forces who successfully defeated the so-called Islamic State on the ground.

“We must not allow failures in Baghdad and other areas to allow the security to deteriorate again,” he told Kurdistan 24.

The British MP noted that although the terror group suffered a territorial defeat, its ideology remains a threat.

“You can only kill an ideology through ensuring development, through ensuring people have good livelihoods, through ensuring people feel safe and happy with who they are and the communities they live in unless we do that and ensure that happens, [ISIS] will not be defeated,” Russell-Moyle stated.

The UK upgraded its embassy office in Erbil to a Consulate-General in 2011. Since then, many senior British officials have visited the autonomous Kurdish region, especially in recent years during the war against the Islamic State. The UK is also one of the key members of the US-led coalition to defeat the extremist group.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany