“The two parties also engaged in discussions regarding the recent progress in the Erbil-Baghdad negotiations and agreed on the significance of maintaining an ongoing dialogue between the Kurdistan Region and the Iraqi Federal Government,” said a statement from the Kurdistan Region Presidency.
Erbil and Baghdad have been at odds recently with each side blaming the other for the nonpayment of the Kurdistan Region’s civil servants’ salaries.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has also recently accused the federal government of violating constitutional provisions by attempting to unilaterally sell oil and gas in the disputed territories.
During the meeting, Barzani and Durel “emphasized the necessity of addressing their issues through mutual understanding and in accordance with the Constitution,” according to the statement.
They also stressed the necessity of safeguarding the rights of Syria’s Kurds, with the country’s political future uncertain since December 8 when a coalition of rebels led by the Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) toppled Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
“They emphasized the significance of Kurdish unity and solidarity, as well as the necessity to safeguard the rights of all diverse groups amid the developments in Syria,” the statement said.
The rebel march on Damascus also triggered the self-proclaimed Syrian National Army (SNA) to strike Kurdish territories in northern and northeast Syria (Rojava), seizing strategic Tal Rifaat and Manbij from Kurdish-led forces and displacing hundreds of thousands.
The Kurdistan Region and France enjoy close relations.
The relationship between France and the Kurds dates back to the 1980s. Danielle Mitterrand, first lady of France from 1981 to 1995, advocated for Kurds suffering under the regime of Saddam Hussein and was instrumental in campaigning for the no-fly zone that allowed the Kurdistan Region to develop its current autonomy. She was affectionately known as the “Mother of Kurds” and inaugurated the first Kurdish parliament in 1992.
A core member of the US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), France has trained about 10,000 Iraqi soldiers, including Kurdish Peshmerga forces. The country’s armed forces continue to play a key role in the anti-ISIS fight through Operation Chammal.
