Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, opened the International Technology Exhibition (HITEX) and stated: “I am happy to see that the future of Kurdistan will be in the hands of such people; undoubtedly, the success and progress of Kurdistan are already evident in their eyes, so I was very pleased to discuss those innovations with them, learn what they have done and where they got their ideas from, which is a source of pride.”
Today, Tuesday, 6 of October, Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, opened the International Technology Exhibition HITEX 2026 in Erbil.
At the outset, the Prime Minister toured the exhibition’s sections and closely observed all the advancements presented at the exhibition by young people and companies from the Kurdistan Region and beyond.
Later, in a statement to the media, the Prime Minister expressed his happiness and stated: “I am happy to see that the future of Kurdistan will be in the hands of such people; undoubtedly, the success and progress of Kurdistan are already evident in their eyes, so I was very pleased to discuss those innovations with them, learn what they have done and where they got their ideas from, which is a source of pride.”
In another part of his statement, regarding the issue of reactivating the Kurdistan Parliament, the Prime Minister stated: “Yesterday, at the graduation ceremony of the University of Duhok, I also called on all parliamentarians to return to reactivate the Parliament, because this is truly a national responsibility of those whom the people have voted for. They should feel that responsibility and be loyal to the votes they were given. They have now distanced themselves and are not coming to reactivate the Parliament; this is truly an evasion of responsibility. I hope every parliamentarian comes; if they have something to say, let them come and say it in Parliament. I do not know what they are afraid of. If someone wants to speak in Parliament, which belongs to the people, they can raise any issue, any criticism, and any discussion there. This must be reactivated as soon as possible, and I ask the other parliamentarians not to waste any more time, because we need Parliament even to form the government. Parliament must be reactivated so that we can take the necessary steps to form the government as well.”
Regarding the issue of the withdrawal of coalition forces, the Prime Minister noted: “It was clear that one day the coalition would leave, because the mission of fighting ISIS has ended, and that force was a coalition force for fighting ISIS. Since this mission has been completed, they are now leaving entirely. However, this does not mean that the relationship of those forces or those countries with Iraq and the Kurdistan Region is coming to an end. For now, they were here symbolically; it was not as if, even during the fight against ISIS, most of the battles had not been fought by the Peshmerga and Iraqi forces. Now as well, both the Iraqi forces are at a better level and the Peshmerga force is ready, well-organized and at a very good level, able to confront any threat directed at Iraq, and especially at the Kurdistan Region. Therefore, we are not concerned that a security vacuum will be created. The only point important to us is the issue of providing and acquiring counter-drone capabilities. Therefore, regarding air defense forces, I believe we have a greater need for assistance from our friends. Along with the federal government, we are continuously in dialogue and We are also continuing discussions with our friends to provide air defense, and in this regard I believe that later we will face no danger.”
At the same time, the Prime Minister reassured the people of Kurdistan and said: “We are very, very optimistic about the future of our country and the good relations that currently exist with the federal government as well. They are working to resolve the old issues and problems, too. This is all a source of happiness, and, God willing, a brighter, better and more stable future awaits us.”
Regarding the recent movements of extremist groups in the border areas of Article 140 and some other areas of Iraq, the Prime Minister noted: “Wherever a security gap emerges, terrorist and extremist forces try to take advantage of it. Therefore, better coordination must be established between the federal government and the Kurdistan Region to eliminate any deficiency or gap that terrorists could exploit.”
Regarding the question of how pleased they are that our young people have advanced so far technologically that they can reach a global level, the Prime Minister stated: “I am very pleased, especially with those young people whom I have seen creating innovations themselves. Simply thinking about innovation is itself something very encouraging. They have also done good things. This paves the way for our young people to think about innovation, to think about creating new things themselves and participating in developing and advancing their own society. This is the greatest achievement for us, because, in truth, the greatest capital in the Kurdistan Region is neither underground resources nor anything else, but human beings themselves. In particular, those young people are the greatest capital for our nation and our country. I am pleased that they themselves have the feeling that they can think about innovation and about participating in the advancement of their country. It is a source of happiness, and we are proud of them.”
Finally, in response to a question about Iraq’s 2027 budget and the rumors saying that only 13 trillion dinars have been allocated to the Kurdistan Region in that budget, while the Kurdistan Region’s entitlement is 30 trillion dinars, the Prime Minister said: “We are demanding our rights. We have not demanded anything beyond our rights. According to the Constitution, and according to the proportion that the Kurdistan Region represents of Iraq’s total budget, that is what we are demanding. According to the censuses that have been conducted, the Kurdistan Region, excluding the disputed territories, only the areas currently under the authority of the Kurdistan Region, according to the census of 14.14%—so whatever proportion is allocated to the Kurdistan Region must be based on that proportion, from Iraq’s total budget. As for the figure I saw or that was mentioned, in reality we have not officially heard that any decision has been made about it so far. There is discussion; each side is trying to increase the budget for another party. But we in the Kurdistan Region are demanding the Kurdistan Region’s financial entitlements, the Kurdistan Region’s rights as they are. We have not asked for more, and we will continue to do so. We are in talks both with His Excellency the Prime Minister and with the relevant committee in Parliament and the Ministry of Finance. Our delegations are also in constant movement to and from Baghdad, and the necessary discussions have taken place so that we can secure the Kurdistan Region’s financial entitlements as they are.”
