Kurdistan
Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the US State Department, in a presser on May 17, 2023. Photo: US State Department/Screengrab
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US State Department on Wednesday told Rudaw that it welcomes the recent reconciliation between the Kurdistan Region’s ruling parties, commending them for their efforts to resolve outstanding issues through dialogue.
Disagreements between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) led the latter to start boycotting the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) weekly cabinet meetings in December. Steps towards rapprochement have been made in recent days, with the PUK team returning to the cabinet meetings on Sunday.
“We commend Kurdish parties for coming together to resolve issues through dialogue,” Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the US State Department, told Rudaw's Diyar Kurda during a press conference on Wednesday.
Patel added that Washington welcomes the parties’ efforts towards reaching an agreement on holding the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections on time later this year, encouraging them to build on the current momentum.
Disagreements between the KDP, PUK, and other blocs in the Kurdistan Region’s parliament over the current elections law and electoral commission prevented the carrying out of the parliamentary elections last year, leading the legislative body to controversially extend its term for an extra year.
The blocs are yet to reach an understanding on this issue, which could cause a further delay in the elections process.
The election agencies of the PUK and the KDP are set to hold a meeting in the upcoming days, aimed at resolving the parties’ disputes concerning the upcoming parliamentary elections.
Repeated calls from diplomatic missions in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region over the past few months have encouraged the reconciliation between the KDP and the PUK, urging the parties to settle their differences as to not delay the electoral process any longer. The missions have commended the recent efforts of the two parties towards reaching an understanding.
The Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections are set to be held on November 18, over a year removed from its originally scheduled date.
Diyar Kurda contributed from Washington DC
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