Prime Minister Barzani holds meetings at Munich Security Conference

Munich, Germany (GOV.KRD) - Prime Minister Masrour Barzani held a series of bilateral discussions in Munich today with counterparts and senior ministers from around the world, including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, US Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, Iraqi Defence Minister Najah al-Shammari, German Federal Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, and Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov.

In his meetings, Prime Minister Barzani underlined the historic and ongoing sacrifices the Peshmerga have made in the fight against ISIS. He thanked foreign leaders and politicians for their support in the battle against terrorist forces, while continuing to stress that no-one should assume the fight is over, as a serious threat of resurgence remains in Iraq and Syria.

Prime Minister Barzani took the opportunity to update leading international foreign and security policymakers on the ambitious reform programme that the Kurdistan Regional Government is undertaking.

To defeat terrorism in the long-term, regional states must implement social and economic changes. The KRG is leading the way with a range of reforms, to be a model for Iraq and the whole region in terms of economic opportunity, social reform, stability and security. During their meeting, Secretary Brouillette praised the Prime Minister's leadership, describing economic progress in the Kurdistan Region as "a miracle".

In today's meetings, Prime Minister Barzani also underlined the many economic opportunities for investment available in the Kurdistan Region, and welcomed further cooperation on energy issues, as well as further international financial and technical assistance for the KRG’s reform programme.