Fruitful meeting with Gorran on government formation: KDP

"Both sides agreed on terms of participation in the new government and what should be considered the top priority."

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Democratic Party’s (KDP) politburo member, Hoshyar Zebari, said a meeting between the KDP and Gorran Movement on Tuesday was positive as both sides emphasized the importance of establishing a new government cabinet.

In a press conference following the KDP’s meeting, Zebari said that “time is a luxury none of the political parties can afford” regarding the formation of the new government.

“We reached a mutual understanding regarding the critical issues at hand. Both sides agreed on terms of participation in the new government and what should be considered the top priority,” he said.

The KDP won 45 seats out of 111 in the Kurdistan Parliament in the September 2018 elections. The PUK followed with 21 seats, and Gorran came in third with 12 seats, halving their gains from the previous election.

According to Zebari, the current governmental gap which the lack of a political agreement has caused does not serve Kurdistan Region.

He also stressed the importance of the political parties’ sense of responsibility to participate in the government formation.

“We will continue our talks with all the political parties and urge them to take part in the new cabinet with regard to their electoral gains.”

Tuesday’s meeting was the third between the two political parties to discuss the formation of the ninth governmental cabinet.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany