KRG Prime Minister Barzani heads to Europe to strengthen diplomatic ties

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Prime Minister Masrour Barzani headed to Europe on Monday to discuss investment and trade in the Kurdistan Region.

Barzani arrived in the Netherlands on Monday, and met with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

“The Netherlands and the Kurdish Autonomous Region of Iraq have a good working relationship in many areas,” Dutch Prime Minister Rutte tweeted. “In my meeting with Prime Minister Barzani just now, we discussed topics such as security in the region, migration and stepping up bilateral cooperation in agriculture” he added

The Prime Minister will be visiting several European countries to meet with officials and business leaders as part of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) efforts to diversify its economy and foreign investment, according to a statement by the KRG. 

“We discussed how Dutch firms can invest in our agriculture sector, and explored further cooperation on security and migration,” PM Barzani added in a tweet

Strengthening ties between the Netherlands and the Kurdistan Region could mean benefiting from the Dutch capabilities and expertise in the agricultural field, the government says.

“The Prime Minister of the Netherlands expressed his country's readiness to support the Kurdistan Region, especially the Peshmerga forces, in the framework of anti-terrorism efforts, as well as supporting development, especially in the agricultural sector, and he urged Dutch investors to invest in the Kurdistan Region,” reads a statement from KRG website.