New US Ambassador to Iraq visits Erbil; bilateral ties, business lead discussions with senior Kurdistan leaders
In a separate meeting with Kurdistan Region Prime Minister-designate Masrour Barzani – who also serves as the Chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council (KRSC) – Tueller agreed “to promote more American investment and business-to-business ties” in the Kurdistan Region, once the new KRG cabinet takes office, Masrour Barzani wrote on Twitter.
On Wednesday, the newly-elected President of the Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, issued a formal letter calling on Masrour Barzani to form the new KRG cabinet, for which he would have 30 days to complete.
The decree was issued a day after the Kurdistan Parliament named Masrour Barzani to the post of Prime Minister with 87 votes out of 97 lawmakers in attendance.
Before replacing Douglas Silliman as US Ambassador to Iraq, Tueller served as America’s Ambassador to Kuwait and, most recently, to Yemen, where he was involved in negotiations between the Iranian-backed Houthi forces and the internationally recognized Yemeni government, which is backed by a Saudi-led coalition.
Tueller assumed his new duties in Baghdad on June 9, when he formally presented his credentials to the Iraqi government.
Editing by Laurie Mylroie