Shafaq News/ The United States emphasized its commitment to strengthening relations between Erbil and Washington in various fields during a visit by US Consul Irvin Hicks to the Department of Foreign Relations in the Kurdistan Regional Government on Monday.

The meeting, which was attended by the official of the Foreign Relations Office in the Kurdistan Regional Government, Sefin Dizyi, and the Kurdish government representative in the United States, Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, discussed the latest political developments, joint coordination, and cooperation, as well as relations between Erbil and Baghdad and the latest developments in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq in general.

Erbil and Washington's relations have been tense recently due to a March report released by the US State Department that alleged torture cases inside prisons in the Kurdistan region, which the Kurdish government firmly denied.

Furthermore, the Kurdistan Region strongly disapproved of remarks by a US official describing Kurdistan as "cartoonish."

Barzani's headquarters responded to the comments, stating that the Kurdistan Region is not cartoonish but a "product of the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs and the anguish of their families."

In general, the United States has viewed the KRG as a strategic partner in Iraq and the region but has also sought to balance its support for the Kurdish region with its broader goals in Iraq as a whole.