Kurdistan Region main parties to prepare for independence talks with Baghdad

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – The two main ruling parties in the Kurdistan Region agreed to resolve political dispute and form a coalition to discuss independence referendum with Baghdad.

Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) held a meeting on Wednesday in an effort to end the long-standing political deadlock and resolve the economic crisis in the Kurdistan Region.

In October 2015, KDP, PUK, Gorran Movement, Kurdistan Islamic Union, and Islamic Group formed a broad-based consensus cabinet led by the KDP’s Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani.

In a joint statement released on Wednesday, both KDP and PUK announced their agreements on several points.

“Forming a joint committee between the representatives of Kurdistan political parties and minorities to hold talks with the Iraqi government or any other related side to finalize the Article 140, and then referendum and Kurdistan independence,” the statement read.

The two main parties also said they would focus their effort on resolving the issues of the political parties in other parts of Kurdistan in accordance to “rule of law and non-interference in each other’s affairs.”

“Both parties will cooperate and support the KRG and related institutions to resolve issues causing the current financial crisis and will implement reform to improve the livelihood of people and employees,” the statement read.

The current economic crisis in the Kurdistan Region led people and government employees and teachers to take to the streets and boycott work in several cities in the Region, calling for the end of salary delay and reduction.

Due to the financial crisis in the Kurdistan Region, caused mainly by the budget cut from Baghdad, drop of oil prices, war against the Islamic State (IS) and the influx of 1.8 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees to the Region, the KRG took several austerity measures including reducing the civil servants’ salaries.

In addition, the KDP-PUK statement emphasized finding proper solutions for the current fundamental issues facing the Region, including reactivating the parliament.

Editing by Ava Homa