Deputy Speaker Dr. Hemin Hawrami and MPs welcome European Parliament’s Security and Defence Committee
Deputy Speaker Dr. Hemin Hawrami, accompanied by Secretary Muna Kahveci and MPs from different parties and ethnic and religious components, on 26 May 2022 welcomed a delegation from the European Parliament’s Security and Defence Committee, led by the chair Ms. Nathalie Loiseau. They held a wide-ranging discussion on the security and political situation in Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
On behalf of the Kurdistan Parliament, Deputy Speaker Hawrami thanked the European Union and EU member states for their support and solidarity with Kurdistan Region over decades and for their assistance to the Peshmerga forces in the war against ISIS.
They discussed the security vacuum in the Kurdistani areas such as Kirkuk and Sinjar, and the situation for religious and ethnic components.
The Kurdistan Parliament MPs highlighted the need to implement the Sinjar Agreement, as well as cooperation between the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga to close the security vacuum in Kirkuk and other Kurdistani areas outside the KRG administrative area, to bring stability for the people.
All sides agreed that Kurdistan Region’s good model of peaceful coexistence between all communities must be protected.
The Kurdistan Parliament MPs said that the rights of Kurdistan’s ethnic and religious components are enshrined in law, and many components have found safety and stability in Kurdistan Region after fleeing other parts of Iraq.
The EP members commended the Kurdistan Parliament for its high ratio of women MPs.
Other topics were the forced demographic change in Kirkuk and other areas, the situation for Yazidi women and children, opportunities for young people to work and progress, women’s rights and eliminating violence against women, Kurdistan’s laws that protect the rights of the ethnic and religious components, and the next Kurdistan Parliament election.
Ms. Loiseau said that the European Parliament wishes for more unity and dialogue in both Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
Both sides agreed on the importance of strengthening inter-parliamentary relations with the European Parliament and member states' parliaments.
After the meeting, Deputy Speaker Hawrami showed the European Parliament committee delegation the Parliament plenary chamber.
Kurdistan Parliament MPs representing different parties and ethnic and religious components, Ms. Marie Paret the Head of the EU Liaison Office in Erbil, Ms. Anne Meskanen the head of the EU Advisory Mission in Iraq, and Mr. Delavar Ajgeiy the KRG Representative in Brussels, participated in the meeting.
