US welcomes KDP, PUK deal on elections, Peshmerga unification

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The United States in the Kurdistan Region welcomes Sunday agreement between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) on holding the Kurdish region’s parliamentary elections, unifying the Peshmerga forces, among others, the country's diplomatic mission in Erbil said on Monday.

Senior delegations of the two parties met on Sunday in Sulaimani and agreed to support a new date for the Kurdistan Region’s sixth parliamentary election that would be set by President Nechirvan Barzani.

“U.S. Consulate General - Erbil welcomes #PUK and #KDP agreement on holding IKP elections & support for #Peshmerga unification & reform,” the mission said on Twitter, the social media site that is being rebranded as X.

“We look forward to seeing progress as the two sides come together and negotiate the remaining issues to benefit the people of Iraq,”  it added.

Due to political infighting, the Kurdistan Region parties could not agree on amending the election law last year, triggering the extension of the current Kurdistan Parliament term by a year.

U.S. Consulate General - Erbil welcomes #PUK and #KDP agreement on holding IKP elections & support for #Peshmerga unification & reform. We look forward to seeing progress as the two sides come together and negotiate the remaining issues to benefit the people of Iraqi #Kurdistan. pic.twitter.com/FhyUTq5Yvd

— U.S. Consulate General Erbil (@USCGERBIL) July 31, 2023

The Iraqi Supreme Court last month issued its own verdict on the extension, calling it “unconstitutional.”

Kurdish political parties have called for holding the polls as soon as possible.

Kurdistan Democratic Party President Masoud Barzani has recently called for holding the elections without any impediment.

Iraq’s top electoral body has recently called for holding the elections in the upcoming February.