US VISA POLICY, BRITISH CITIZENS AND THE KURDISTAN REGION IN IRAQ

That this House entirely accepts that the US has good reason to protect its borders; believes, however, that a recently enacted measure has the unintended consequence of making travel to the US harder for those seeking to build relationships with crucial and joint allies, such as the Kurdistan region in Iraq; notes that those who have visited Iraq, and several other countries, since 2011 are no longer eligible for the visa waiver scheme and have to apply for a visa; further notes that there are case-by-case exemptions for those who have visited the Kurdistan region and Iraq for governments, humanitarian bodies, the media and for legitimate business purposes; regrets the inconvenience caused to UK parliamentarians who have visited the Kurdistan region, an ideological and military bulwark against Daesh, or those who have, for instance, voluntarily provided vital medical operations; is concerned that the new rule could discourage people, whose choice of visiting Kurdistan is discretionary, from participating in a wide variety of mutually beneficial commercial and cultural activities; and urges the US authorities to carefully monitor the implementation of this rule and review it as soon as possible with a view to repealing it.