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Rustam Bakoyan, the MP of the NA Civil Contract Faction, the Chair of the Armenian-Iraqi Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group, who is in Erbil (Iraqi Kurdistan) on a working visit, had meetings with Niyaz Barzani, the Head of Foreign Policy & Diplomacy in the Office of the President of the Kurdistan Region – Iraq, Daban Shadala, the Deputy Minister in the Department of Foreign Relations, Zana Mala Khalid, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) - Head of Bloc, and Luqman Wardy, the Deputy Head of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) – the two ruling parties in the Kurdistan Parliament – Iraq, and members of the party on October 19.

They referred to the decision made by the RA Government on July 14, 2022 to provide humanitarian aid to the Armenian families in need in Iraqi Kurdistan, as well as to the Yazidi refugees sheltered in the camps in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The interlocutors highly appreciated the provision of humanitarian aid by the RA Government, which was evaluated as a message to the international community not to stop helping around one million refugees and internally displaced persons sheltering in Iraqi Kurdistan, which is really needed. The beneficiaries will receive humanitarian aid during Rustam Bakoyan’s visit.

Rustak Bakoyan presented details about the complex military and political situation in the South Caucasus after the 44-day war in 2020 unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh, drawing the attention of the interlocutors to the Azerbaijani aggressions against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia in May-November 2021 and September 13-14, 2022, the invasion of internationally recognized borders of Armenia. Rustam Bakoyan emphasized the clear position of the international community, that is, the withdrawal of the Azerbaijani armed forces from the RA sovereign territory and the withdrawal to the initial positions. In this regard, the MP also presented the positions of the countries that play a key role in the South Caucasus regarding recent aggression of Azerbaijan. He stressed that the RA political leadership continues to raise this issue on various international platforms, expecting a direct and adequate response from the international community.

Issues related to the bilateral relations and regional developments were discussed during the meetings.