McCain did not pressure Kurdish leadership on disputed areas – statement

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: Chief of staff of President Massoud Barazani, Fouad Hussein, on Tuesday said that the U.S. Congress delegation had called to use dialogue in solving pending issues between Baghdad and Arbil, denying any pressure from the delegation on the Kurdish leadership on disputed areas, according to an official statement. “The meeting between President Barzani and Sen. John McCain and his accompanying delegation has not discussed any Kurdish concessions on disputed areas,” said the statement received by Iraqi News. “The disputed areas is an internal Iraqi issue,” Hussein said in the statement, noting that the delegation expressed its support to solve all problems between Baghdad and Arbil. A U.S. Congress delegation, led by Sen. John McCain, had arrived in Arbil on Saturday (Aug. 15) , where he met with President Barzani and Prime Minister Negervan Barzani as well as Parliament’s Speaker Adnan al-Mufti to discuss the outcome of the recent Kurdish elections and the coming parliamentary elections in Iraq . SH (P)/SR 1