President Barzani Welcomes UK Foreign Secretary William Hague in Salahaddin

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President Barzani Welcomes UK Foreign Secretary William Hague in Salahaddin.
Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, (KRP.org)- President Masoud Barzani welcomed United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary William Hague in Salahaddin on Friday.



 During the meeting the President and Foreign Secretary discussed the latest political and security developments in Iraq following the latest ISIS advances in Mosul and other areas in Iraq. 

Mr. Hague, Hague, in his first visit to Kurdistan, stated that unless Iraq’s political and security challenges are addressed urgently, the situation would further deteriorate. He urged President Barzani and the KRG to play an active role in reviving the political process in Baghdad and help form a new government that is genuinely inclusive and representative. The Foreign Secretary also praised the Kurdistan Region peshmerga forces for putting a stop to ISIS advances into the disputed areas. He also thanked the KRG for taking in large numbers of refugees fleeing from violence in Ninawa province and added that the UK government plans to help with this humanitarian effort. 

President Barzani briefed the Foreign Secretary about the causes of the current political and security crisis facing Iraq, blaming wrong policies by authorities in Baghdad. The President said that terrorists groups have been able exploit the mistakes by Baghdad. He agreed with the Foreign Secretary that priority should be given to political solutions, rather than military ones. The President reiterated that any solution must be in light of the current facts on the ground and that the Kurdistan Region would not pay the price for the failures of the policies of Baghdad. He went on to say that Baghdad has failed to work on the basis of real power-sharing in the past ten years which in turn has led to the current dangerous situation. 

In a joint press conference following their meeting, President Barzani said, “We tried from more than 10 years with Iraq to solve the Kirkuk issue. Peshmerga Forces have only been sent to those areas when the Iraqi army has withdrawn. They were sent to prevent a security vacuum.  Article 140 of the constitution is implemented and finished and we won’t be talking about it.”