Washington, DC - The Vice President met today with Masrour Barzani, Chancellor of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region Security Council, on the margins of the Chancellor's meeting with Deputy National Security Advisor Avril Haines.  

The Vice President commended Peshmerga and Iraqi forces for their bravery and sacrifice in the fight against ISIL and offered condolences for lives lost.  The Vice President applauded the close cooperation between the Iraqi Government and the Kurdistan Regional Government to ensure ISIL's lasting defeat and reaffirmed strong U.S. support for a united, democratic, and federal Iraq committed to the welfare of all Iraqi citizens.