Minister Falah Bakir in London to highlight situation in Kurdistan and Iraq
At the meetings, Minister Bakir said that Iraq was at a critical point. "Iraq is at a cross-roads," he said. "The US troops have left and it is now up to us in Iraq to find a way to co-exist and to show our commitment to the Constitution and to power-sharing as set out in the Constitution. Everyone in Iraq has to feel that he or she has a stake in this country and that they are equal citizens. We in the Kurdistan Region are committed to this and urge all the Iraqi parties and groups to come together."
Minister Bakir, who was accompanied at his meetings by Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, the KRG Representative to the UK, met with officials at the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office where the situation in Iraq was highlighted. Minister Bakir emphasised the need for a national conference of all Iraqi political parties to find a way out of the current impasse, as called for by Kurdistan Region's President Masoud Barzani. The meeting also discussed the progress in Kurdistan in terms of economic development and the internal political process.
Minister Bakir also met with the Turkish Ambassador to London Ahmet Unal Cevikoz where they discussed the changes across the Middle East as well as the state of affairs in Iraq, the Kurdistan Region and in Turkey. Iraq is Turkey's fourth-largest trade partner and the majority of that trade is with the Kurdistan Region where Turkish companies play an important role, especially in construction. Increasingly, the there are also cultural and educational exchanges.
The Minister visited the House of Lords where he met with Baroness Morris of Bolton who chairs the Conservative Middle East Council (CMEC) and is one of the deputy chairmen of the House of Lords. CMEC brings Conservative Party parliamentarians together with leading experts and international guests to promote the discussion of UK foreign policy in the Middle East. Minister Bakir highlighted the positive role that British universities, cultural organisations, NGOs and companies have played in Kurdistan since 2003 and encouraged continued cooperation in future.
Minister Bakir is in London for a visit that began last week when he attended a conference highlighting the abuses and crimes against the people of Kurdistan and Iraq committed by the regime of Saddam Hussein.The three-day conference in London was organised by the Ministry of Human Rights in Iraq and was attended by the Iraqi Minister of Human Rights Muhammad Al-Sudani, Iraqi Charge d’Affaires Dr Muhyidin Abdulla, representatives from the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office and British MP Meg Munn.
The Kurdish delegation was represented by Sabah Ahmed Mohamed, the KRG Minister for Martyr and Anfal Affairs, Minister Bakir, and the KRG Representative to the UK Ms Abdul Rahman, as well as Kurdish members of the Iraqi and Kurdistan parliaments and officials from the Anfal Ministry.
The KRG ministers also held a meeting with the Kurdish community on Sunday on raising international awareness of the Kurdish genocide.
The UK visit by Minister Bakir continues this week and follows a similar trip to the United States last month.
