ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Region’s authorities on Thursday told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian that they will not allow the Region to be used as a base to pose threats to neighboring countries amid Tehran’s concerns over the presence of Iranian Kurdish rebels on its borders.
“Assurance was provided that, as stated in the agreement between Iraq and Iran, of which the Kurdistan Region is a key party, the Kurdistan Region will never become a threat base against any of its neighbors. We are peaceful and want to keep our old and good relations,” Chief of Staff of the Kurdistan Region Presidency Fawzi Hariri told Rudaw on Thursday.
Pezeshkian visited Baghdad on Wednesday in his first foreign trip since he assumed the position in July. He also met with Kurdish leaders in Erbil and Sulaimani, discussing a range of topics.
In Erbil, Pezeshkian met with Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) President Masoud Barzani. He also met with representatives of the Region’s political and religious leaders.
“We have historical, cultural, and linguistic ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the Iranian president’s visit to the Kurdistan Region is a historic event,” President Barzani told reporters, expressing Erbil’s desire to improve ties with Tehran.
Iraq and Iran signed a security pact in March 2023 that saw Baghdad agree to disarm Kurdish opposition groups and secure the border regions. The Iranian military had threatened to use military action if Baghdad failed to fulfill the agreement.
The Kurdistan Region and Iran enjoy good ties. However, the relationship has been strained in recent years by Tehran’s attacks inside Kurdistan Region’s borders on exiled Kurdish groups and deadly missile strikes on locations that it alleged were Mossad bases. Erbil has vehemently rejected the claims.
Asked if the Kurdish authorities tried to convince Pezehkian that no Mossad base exists in the Region, Hariri replied that they did not see the need to give such an assurance to the Iranian delegation “because they know that there are no such bases.
As per the security deal between Iran and Iraq, if Iran has any security concerns it should inform Baghdad and Erbil of it before unilaterally acting.
“So we are sure that what happened in the past is very rare if it happens again,” he noted, stating that the security agreement is being implemented “successfully.”
