Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq, (GOV.krd) - Kurdistan Regional Government’s Prime Minister, Nechirvan Barzani, yesterday received General John Allen, Special Envoy of President Obama for the Global Coalition to Counter the Islamic State terrorist organisation, ISIS, and his accompanying delegation, which included his deputy Brett McGurk, who is also the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs, the US Ambassador to Iraq and US Consul General to the Kurdistan Region.

General Allen pointed to his visit to the joint operations room and expressed his satisfaction with the level of cooperation and coordination between the relevant authorities in the Kurdistan Region and the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS.

General Allen congratulated the Peshmerga forces on their recent victories, particularly in Sinjar and the surrounding areas, which made the headlines around the world. He stressed the need to continue to support the Peshmerga forces. He said that as the threat is serious, the Peshmerga forces need to be further supported.

Prime Minister Barzani expressed his gratitude and appreciation for the support and assistance that Kurdistan is receiving from the international coalition, particularly for carrying out air strikes which have played a major role in helping the Peshmerga forces and changing the balance of power militarily. He stressed that the Peshmerga forces need more developed weapons and training.

The two sides also discussed the recent agreement reached between Erbil and Baghdad on oil export and budgetary issues. They stressed the importance of the continuation of high level visits between Erbil and Baghdad with the view to improving the relations. The situation in Iraq and the wider region in general was also among the topics, discussed in the meeting.