§ Jeremy CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contacts his officials have had with(a) representatives of Iraqi Kurdish groups, (b) the Kurdish Parliament and (c) the Government in Baghdad covering the future of the northern part of Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [23641]
§ Mr. BradshawFCO Ministers and officials have regular contact with Iraqi Kurdish groups. I recently met Nechirvan Barzani and Kosrat Rasoul, senior representatives of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) respectively. FCO officials have also met members elected to the Kurdish Parliament in 1992. Although HMG do not have diplomatic relations with Iraq, officials in New York are always available to speak to the Iraqis if they wish to do so.
HMG are committed to the maintenance of Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its current borders. The only long-term future for Iraq's Kurds is as part of a stable, peaceful Iraq which gives them a negotiated degree of autonomy.