Parliament Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq meets US Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller

Speaker of the Kurdistan Parliament Dr. Rewas Faiq on 17th July discussed with the US Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller the importance of developing bilateral relations between the US and the Kurdistan Region.  Ambassador Tueller said, “The United States has strong relations with the Kurdistan Region and we thank Kurdistan for embracing Iraqi IDPs and Syrian refugees.”

Speaker Faiq thanked the US for its support for Kurdistan over many years; for protecting Kurdistan Region in 1992 by creating the safe haven and no-fly zone after the first Gulf War, for their role in toppling Saddam Hussein’s regime, and their support for the Peshmerga forces in fighting against ISIS.

Dr. Faiq called on the US Government to help both Iraq and Kurdistan Region to implement Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution to resolve the problems in the disputed areas.

The Speaker briefed the US Ambassador on the reserved parliamentary seats for women, Turkmen, Christians and Armenians, and said that Kurdistan protects peaceful coexistence between different communities.

Dr. Faiq also discussed the political process in Kurdistan Region, the new KRG cabinet formation and the process of unifying the Peshmerga forces. She added, “We in the Parliament support the government and will work with them to fight and eliminate corruption. We are waiting for the government to submit an anti-corruption bill to Parliament so that we can work on passing a law to combat corruption in all government institutions.”

Parliament Secretary Muna Kahveci, who is Turkman, briefed the Ambassador Tueller on the different parliamentary blocks and parties and on the role of women in the new KRG cabinet. The US Consul General to Kurdistan Region Mr. Steven Fagin also attended the meeting.