ABU DHABI,— Nechirvan Barzani, the president of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, arrived in the UAE on Wednesday in a visit that carried significance beyond its formal agenda, as his son Idris was seen publicly by his side in the country for the first time.
Footage from the airport showed Idris had reached Abu Dhabi ahead of his father.
He was seen with Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, a member of the UAE ruling family, who was present to receive Nechirvan upon arrival.
That reception stood in contrast to visits made by Masrour Barzani, Nechirvan’s cousin and caretaker prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Masrour has typically been received by lower-ranking UAE officials, including Minister of State Saeed Al Hajeri. His official visits to the United States have also not included formal receiving ceremonies. Observers said the difference points to the higher ceremonial rank tied to the Kurdistan Region presidency.
That gap in standing was also visible in an earlier incident. When an Iranian drone struck Nechirvan Barzani’s palace in Kurdistan, foreign governments and senior world leaders, including Trump, publicly condemned the attack.
When the homes of Massoud Barzani and Masrour Barzani were hit in separate strikes, the incidents drew no notable response from foreign governments or world leaders and received little attention in the international press.
The contrast in treatment is one visible sign of a broader tension. The rivalry between the two branches of the Barzani family, who together dominate political life in Iraqi Kurdistan, is gaining momentum.
A growing power struggle between Nechirvan and his cousin Masrour has become increasingly difficult to ignore, with each side working to position its next generation for future leadership.
Idris had earlier joined his father at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey, where he sat in on a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He also held a separate meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. According to video footage, the two appeared to know each other personally, exchanging a warm greeting.
Masrour has regularly brought his son Areen to meetings with foreign officials during UAE visits, a move seen as an effort to build his public profile.
Nechirvan now appears to be doing the same with Idris. An Italian-speaking observer, when asked by iKurd News for his opinion on the visit, put it plainly in his language: “Il pape porta il bambino con se” – the father brings the little child with him.
With Idris present at high-level meetings involving both Erdogan and the UAE president within a single month, observers said the pattern points to a deliberate effort to groom him for senior political office.
Nechirvan Barzani held talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, according to the UAE presidency.
The discussions focused on expanding cooperation between the UAE and Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region, in ways that advance shared interests and deliver benefits to both countries.
The Barzani clan, which has led the Kurdistan Democratic Party and held a firm grip on the Kurdish region for decades, counts billionaires and multi-millionaires among its ranks.
Critics and observers have routinely accused the family of corruption, nepotism, and using the region’s oil wealth to enrich the clan rather than serve the broader population.
The Barzanis have often been referred to by critics as the “Kurdish oligarchs,” a label that reflects long-standing concerns about the concentration of political power and personal wealth within a single family.
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