On Thursday, Ambassador Emmanuel Mignot, France’s Consul General in the Kurdistan Region, underlined that France stands with its friends in Kurdistan, the day after the U.S.-led Coalition concluded its mission in the Kurdistan Region.

Read More: KRG Foreign Relations Department Thanks Coalition for Support

On Wednesday, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Department of Foreign Relations said in a statement that the KRG looks forward to maintaining security and military cooperation through the appropriate bilateral and multilateral frameworks now that the U.S.-led Coalition mission has concluded in Iraq.

In response, in a post on X Consul General Mignot underlined that “France duly takes note of this expression of gratitude with appreciation and stands alongside its friends in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.”

Read More: KRG Prime Minister Thanks EU, U.S. Partners for Supporting Peshmerga

On Wednesday, KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani also thanked the Coalition partners, including the United States and several European countries, for assisting the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

Several European countries were part of the Coalition mission in Iraq, including France, the Netherlands, Italy, and Germany, supporting Kurdish Peshmerga forces with weapons and training since 2014.

“Over 6,300 Dutch military personnel have, together with international partners, pushed back ISIS terrorists in Iraq over the past 12 years,” the Netherlands’ Minister of Defense Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius posted on X.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Dutch Defense Ministry noted that “Dutch military personnel contributed to training, advising, and supporting Iraqi and Kurdish security partners. 

“In 2024, Iraq and the United States agreed to wind down the [Operation Inherent Resolve] mission, culminating in its termination today,” the ministry stated.Also on Wednesday, the UK Ministry of Defense stated that, “following more than a decade of operations, training and capacity building, Iraqi Security Forces and the Kurdish Peshmerga have secured the enduring territorial defeat of [ISIS] in Iraq and are now well placed to take primary responsibility for the country’s security.” 

On Tuesday, Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto stated that the end of the Coalition mission “brings to an end a 12-year commitment, during which thousands of our military personnel operated in Iraq, contributing to the fight against [ISIS], the country’s security, and the training of the Iraqi Armed Forces and the security forces of Iraqi Kurdistan.

“However, the return of our armed forces does not mean the end of our relationship with an important and friendly country, nor does it rule out future forms of collaboration and cooperation.”

Furthermore, Colonel Mitko Müller, spokesperson for the German Federal Ministry of Defense, told reporters on September 30 that “equipping and training the Peshmerga was, firstly, the right thing to do, and secondly, an important step toward creating security and stability.

“We have a very close, trusting relationship. The minister has also visited the region frequently. The German Armed Forces have fulfilled their mission in the Kurdistan Region.”