SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) agreed on Wednesday to form a committee for talks on Kurdistan parliamentary elections set for October 1.
Officials from PUK and KDP politburos held a meeting at the Kurdistan Region Presidency in Erbil. Bafel Jalal Talabani and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, who is also KDP’s deputy leader, attended the meeting.
In a joint statement, both sides said they discussed relations between the two parties and the latest developments in Iraq and Kurdistan as well as cooperation and joint works.
They stressed that the current visit by the Region’s president to Sulaimani city had facilitated talks between the two sides.
“An appropriate ground has come forward to facilitate and develop relations and return trust between both sides following the visit by Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani to Sulaimani,” they said.
Barzani visited Sulaimani on Sunday to hold meetings with the political parties in the city.
The PUK and KDP officials decided during the meeting on Wednesday on the continuity of meetings between politburos of the two parties, the statement read.
They also agreed to form a joint committee between their politburos for talks on the process of elections in the Kurdistan Region, according to the statement.
The two parties stressed their support for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and its legitimate institutions. They also agreed to suspend their media campaign against each other, the joint statement said.
The meeting came two days after U.N. envoy to Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert said UNAMI had invited representatives of the political parties in Kurdistan for a “joint closed meeting” on Thursday to exchange their views on the elections.
“With the KR elections scheduled for 1 October 2022, this meeting provides a welcome and timely opportunity for a direct exchange of views,” she added.
The Kurdistan Region held parliamentary elections in September 2018. Parliamentary elections are held every four years in the Kurdistan Region. A minimum quota of 30% of seats in the 111-seat house is reserved for women and 11 seats for parties representing minorities.
