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July 11th, 2017 
Awake Goy 
nsnbc : A high-level delegation of the referendum committee from Iraq’s Kurdistan Autonomous Region (KAR), headed by KAR President Masoud Barzani, held its first official meeting on Tuesday, with the Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and the Defense Ministry. The parties are among others discussing the expected referendum on the independence of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, expected to be held later this year.
The meeting is expected to last until Tuesday evening. After that, the Kurdish delegation will meet with the president of the Flemish Region of Belgium, to be followed by bilateral meetings with EU leaders, and official meetings in the EU parliament.
KAR President Masoud Barzani and the high-level delegates of the referendum council arrived in the Belgian capital Brussels on Monday. Hoshyar Zebari, who is a member of the delegation, told reporters that the delegation is in Brussels with a clear message, which will be “presented to everyone, explained to them and will ask for their support.”
Zebari said Europe had its weight in the subject of Kurdish referendum, pointing out that they could also make up for much of the suffering of Kurds in the last century that was “caused by them” by supporting the upcoming referendum. And that’s why, he added, they are “in the heart of the European Union and its parliament,” seeking support.
This is the first diplomatic foreign trip of the Referendum Council. President Barzani’s accompanying delegation consists of Kirkuk governor Najmadin Karim; Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) representative Hoshyar Zebari; Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) representative Mohammed Hawdiyani; along with Falah Mustafa, the head of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Department of Foreign Relations.
Among the delegates are also, Mohammed Saaddadin, a Turkmen representative, along with Wahid Hurmuz, a Christian representative, and Sheikh Shamo, a representative for Yezidi Kurds. The Iraqi Kurdistan Autonomous Region has announced its plans on September 25 to hold a referendum on independence. It is likely that the referendum, if a majority votes in favor, will not immediately lead to a declaration of independence, but rather inform negotiations with the federal government in Baghdad.
F/AK – nsnbc 11.07.2017
Source Article from https://nsnbc.me/2017/07/11/barzani-and-iraqi-kurdish-referendum-council-visit-belgium/
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