Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq welcomes high-level delegation from Germany

Kurdistan Parliament Speaker Dr. Rewaz Faiq on 27 January welcomed two senior members of Germany’s ruling Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union parties: Mr. Markus Grübel, Federal Government Commissioner for Worldwide Religious Freedom; and Mr. Jürgen Hardt, CDU/CSU Foreign Policy Spokesman in the German Federal Parliament.

They were accompanied by the German Consul General in Kurdistan, Ms. Barbara Wolf.

Their discussions focused on the relationship between Kurdistan Region and Germany, the current situation in Kurdistan and Iraq, and the need to find peaceful solutions to the current problems.

Speaker Faiq thanked Germany for their support and training of the Peshmerga forces and said, “We call on the Coalition forces to stay in Iraq and Kurdistan because the risk of terrorism by ISIS and other groups remains high."

Concerning the economic situation, the Speaker said, “In Kurdistan we want to move away from reliance on oil revenue and we are taking practical steps to develop agriculture.”

Mr. Hardt and Mr. Grübel said that they want stronger relations between Kurdistan Region and Germany and they commended the Peshmerga forces’ bravery and sacrifices in the war against ISIS. They also emphasised that the Kurdish political parties need to remain united to protect Kurdistan’s interests.