A security co-operation agreement between the US and Iraq’s Kurdistan Region is due to expire at the end of September, but it will not end ties between Erbil and Washington, Kurdish officials told The National, after reports US assistance to the region had been suspended.The US and the Kurdistan Regional Government signed an agreement in 2016 to support the reform and unification of the Peshmerga forces. The agreement is set to expire on September 30, coinciding with the withdrawal of troops from Iraq by the US and other members of the anti-ISIS coalition. “The expiration of the current agreement should not be interpreted as an end to the strategic partnership or co-operation between the US and the Kurdistan Region,” Noreldin Waisy, spokesman for KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, told The National. “The Peshmerga have been a key and trusted partner in the fight against terrorism, and there remains a strong basis for continued security co-operation.”The agreement between the US and the KRG established a framework for US support to the Peshmerga during the campaign against ISIS. An updated agreement signed in September 2022 set out the terms of US support for a further four years, including assistance in counter-ISIS operations and efforts to professionalise and unify Kurdish forces.Mr Waisy said discussions could take place in the future on a new framework governing continued...
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