Kurdish, US delegations meet on Peshmerga reforms

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A delegation from the Kurdistan Region on Tuesday held a broad meeting with a joint US military and diplomatic delegation to discuss the reform and reorganization of the Peshmerga forces.

“The Kurdistan Region’s delegation, which consisted of various officials and authorities from the presidency, the government, and Peshmerga forces, met with a US delegation led by General Kevin Leahy, commander of the coalition forces in Iraq and Syria, to discuss the coordination, joint work, the reform process, and the reorganization of the Peshmerga forces,” read a statement from the Kurdistan Region Presidency.

The latest of the process for reforming and reorganizing the Peshmerga forces were discussed, according to the statement, and the importance of cooperation between the two sides through the process was emphasized.

The Peshmerga Ministry announced in late December plans to establish two operations command centers comprising 11 military divisions as part of ongoing efforts to reform and unify the Kurdistan Region’s forces.

Despite efforts by Washington and several European countries, the Peshmerga remains a highly partisan force in organization and loyalty, split between the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and its rival Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

Unit 70 forces are affiliated with the PUK and Unit 80 forces are controlled by the KDP. These two units make up the majority of the Peshmerga forces, amounting to over 100,000 troops.

Unification of the Peshmerga forces has been on the agenda of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) for several years, and while some progress has been made and a number of brigades controlled by the PUK and the KDP have been added to the ministry, much work remains to be done.