ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi discussed security and trade with French President Emmanuel Macron in a phone call on Saturday.

The leaders discussed political, economic, and cultural frameworks for bilateral relations between Iraq and France, according to a statement from Kadhimi’s office.

"Iraq is continuing to build balanced cooperation and exchange relations with all international partners," away from those who intervene, it adds.

Macron voiced France’s desire to support Iraq, especially economically, noting that French companies have expressed interest in investing in the country’s various sectors.

This call comes several days after a visit by the President of the Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, to Paris on Monday. Barzani met with the French on Tuesday in Paris at the Elysee Palace, where the leaders discussed topics of mutual interest.

Analysts have previously told Rudaw English that Barzani’s trip was part of a larger effort for France to reconfigure its vision for Iraq and the wider Middle East.

“The visit comes at a time when France is redesigning its policy in the Middle East. This redesign of the policy begins in Iraq. I mean, France wants to turn Iraq back into the focal point of the Middle East,” Adel Bakawan, Director of Research Department at the Mediterranean Middle East Research and Studies Institute (iReMMO), told Rudaw English on Monday.

France is a member of the Global Coalition Against Daesh (Islamic State, acronym ISIS) – formed in 2014 after the terror group took hold of swathes of Syria and Iraq to assist local forces in defeating the extremist group.

In September, Macron visited Baghdad for for talks with top Iraq and Kurdistan Region officials. Macron met President Barham Salih and PM Kadhimi and discussed the need for continued military cooperation against the Islamic State (ISIS). The two parties also discussed economic cooperation between the two countries.

Rudaw