ERBIL, Iraq — The United States on Sunday opened its first consulate in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, a symbol of the normalization of U.S.-Iraqi relations as U.S. military forces withdraw and recognition of the dynamic growth of the Kurdish economy.
At the second such event in less than a week, after dedication of a similar mission in Basra, the southern oil hub, U.S. Ambassador James Jeffrey said America’s “fondest wish” is that a “strong and vibrant Kurdistan region” within a democratic and federal Iraq “arise from the tragic history of this region.”
He was referring to years of suppression of Kurdish culture, the gassing of thousands of Kurds and the wholesale displacement of Kurds from traditional lands by the Saddam Hussein regime, which the U.S. overthrew in the 2003 invasion.
