US Secretary Of State Praises Masrour Barzani And Supports A Strong And Stable Kurdistan

 US Secretary Of State Praises Masrour Barzani And Supports A Strong And Stable Kurdistan

The US State Department commended Kurdistan Regional Prime Minister Masrour Barzani for settling contracts with US companies, affirming Washington's strong support for the Kurdistan Region as a cornerstone of the relationship with Iraq.

This came during a meeting between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Barzani on Friday (May 23) in Washington, D.C., where they discussed opportunities to enhance trade and investment between the United States and the Kurdistan Region, according to a statement by State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce issued this morning (May 24).

Rubio praised Barzani's steps to expand natural gas production through settling contracts with US companies, considering this step to enable Iraq to move closer to energy independence. The two sides also stressed the importance of protecting the rights of religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq and Syria.

This meeting follows the signing of two major contracts in Washington, worth $110 billion, between the Ministry of Natural Resources in the region and the companies Western Zagros and HKN Energy, which were attended by Prime Minister Barzani on May 19.

For its part, the Iraqi Oil Ministry announced its rejection of these contracts, to which Barzani commented, "We hope these positions will be reviewed in a way that serves the interests of all Iraqis. The more flexibility Baghdad shows, the clearer our good intentions and shared endeavors will become." https://www.radionawa.com/all-detail.aspx?jimare=41901