SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani called for long-term cooperation between Kurdistan and EU to reduce illegal migration.
Barzani spoke by phone with Vice President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas on Wednesday to discuss the situation of migrants stranded on Poland and Belarus border.
Barzani urged the Schinas to mobilize EU’s “full support” to secure immediate humanitarian relief to the migrants stranded on the border, the KRG said in a statement.
Iraqis, especially Kurds, have made up a significant number of the estimated 4,000 migrants waiting in freezing forests and trying to cross into Lithuania, Latvia and Poland.
Kurdish officials said Kurds were lured to Belarus by traffickers with false promises of an easy journey.
Migrants said they left by their own accord, desperate for a life with the dignity they couldn’t find at home, and were not coerced by smugglers.
“Both agreed that international smuggling networks have used the migrants for political purpose,” the KRG cited Barzani and Schinas as saying.
KRG spokesman Jotiar Adil said on Wednesday that more than 10 “smugglers” had been detained and that investigations were ongoing.
Barzani called for long-term strategic cooperation between the Kurdistan Region, Iraq and the European Union to reduce illegal migration, the statement read.
“In that regard, he urged Commissioner Schinas to help increase trade and investment with Europe and technical and financial assistance for the KRG’s reform agenda,” the statement said.
“They agreed that doing so would help create more jobs for locals.”
Barzani also welcomed a visit by a technical team from Belarus to Erbil and Baghdad to consider more joint measures, according to the KRG.
For months, EU countries have accused Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko of orchestrating the migrant crisis to avenge sanctions imposed after he won a disputed 2020 election and authorities cracked down on mass protests against him.
Several airlines have already agreed to halt flights into the Belarusian capital for most passengers from countries including Iraq and Syria.
Humanitarian agencies say up to 13 migrants have died at the border, where many have suffered in a cold, damp forest with little food or water as a frigid winter sets in.
