TEHRAN - Nechirvan Barzani, the President of Iraq’s Kurdistan, has asserted that the semi-autonomous region is dedicated to the security pact between Iran and Iraq and would not permit anybody to pose a danger to Tehran.

Barzani made the comments on Monday at a meeting with Mohammad Kazem Ale-Sadeq, the Iranian ambassador to Baghdad.

On March 19, Iran and Iraq inked a security agreement in Baghdad that includes coordination in protecting border security between the two countries.

The agreement followed hit-and-run attacks by Iran’s militant separatist groups that hide in Iraqi Kurdistan. They have expanded their nefarious actions, particularly in border regions.

In response to the actions, Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has more than once fired rockets and missiles at their hiding places in northern Iraq.

Iran has repeatedly warned the local authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan that it will not tolerate the presence and activity of militant groups along its northern borders, threatening a decisive response if those areas become a hub for anti-Islamic Republic terrorists.

Ambassador Ale-Sadeq, for his part, urged the implementation of the Iran-Iraq security pact as well as the advancement of bilateral ties and positive communication and contact between Erbil and Tehran.

On Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said there is no extension of the deadline for Iraq to disarm Kurdish separatists.

“Iran’s stance is quite clear. According to the agreement reached with the Iraqi government, the final deadline for the disarmament of the terrorist and separatist forces in Iraq’s Kurdistan region ends on September 19 and that deadline will not be extended in any way,” Kanaani said.

He added that the Iraqi government has taken steps in this direction and has stated that it would keep its promises.

Back in May, Qassem Al-Araji, the Iraqi national security advisor, visited Tehran for talks over border security.

“Under the direction of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the National Security Adviser is heading to Tehran at the head of a security delegation to discuss measures to secure the borders between Iraq and Iran,” Al-Araji said in a statement on Facebook.

In Tehran, Al-Araji met with Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Ahmadian told the Iraqi official that Iran expects Baghdad to expel counter-revolutionary elements from Iraq in accordance with the Iran-Iraq security agreement.

“We expect the Iraqi government to guarantee the security of this country's borders with Iran as soon as possible while ending the presence of anti-revolutionary elements in this country within the framework of this agreement,” Ahmadian told Al-Araji.

Ahmadian described the March security agreement, which is the result of months of dialogue and joint efforts of the relevant institutions of the two countries, as a very appropriate and strategic measure and emphasized the strict implementation of its provisions.

“Shared interests”

In their Monday meeting, Ambassador Ale-Sadeq and President Barzani also addressed topics of shared interest and the most recent regional developments.

Barzani also emphasized the need to maintain good ties with Iran since it is a crucial neighbor of Iraqi Kurdistan.  

The envoy praised local Kurdish officials for their outstanding efforts to enable the Arbaeen mourning ceremony, the biggest yearly religious gathering in the world.

Culled from Tehran Times