India, Aug. 17 -- US President Donald Trump-led administration's efforts in mid-May to reach a ceasefire with Iran led them to take an unconventional route, bypassing the Iranian negotiators for a backchannel to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

For this, then-US director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard tapped the leadership of Iraq's Kurdistan region, contacting Nechirvan Barzani to reach out directly to the IRGC leadership, Axios reported. Barzani, the President of the Kurdistan region in Iraq, is reportedly trusted by both Washington and senior leaders of the Iranian regime and IRGC.

He lived in Iran during the country's war with Iraq, and studied at the University of Tehran. He is fluent in Farsi and had personal relatio...