ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) will sign a "strategic" agreement with the New Generation Movement in the coming days and is seeking half of the cabinet positions in the next Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), PUK leader Bafel Talabani announced on Monday.
Speaking at an event marking the anniversary of the party's founding, Talabani said the agreement with New Generation is part of broader efforts to strengthen cooperation among Kurdish political parties.
“With God's support, in the coming days we will sign a strategic agreement with our friends in the New Generation Movement, and we will extend our hand to the other parties to truly change the lives of Kurdish citizens in Kurdistan,” Talabani said.
The remarks come as Kurdish parties continue negotiations over the formation of the next KRG following parliamentary elections held last year.
Talabani said the PUK and its allies are entitled to half of the next cabinet based on their parliamentary representation.
“We are ready to negotiate based on numbers. We are 39 to 39, and we are demanding half of the government,” he said.
The PUK won 23 seats in the Kurdistan parliamentary election. Together with the New Generation Movement's 15 seats and the Christian quota seat in Sulaimani province, the bloc controls 39 seats. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) also secured 39 seats.
Talabani praised the cooperation between the PUK and New Generation, saying it had helped bring greater stability to Sulaimani province, but stressed that broader Kurdish unity remains necessary.
The New Generation Movement emerged as the largest opposition party in the Kurdistan Region following the latest elections.
“After this, we have a project to extend our hand toward understanding with all Kurdish parties. We must create a national front,” he said.
Calling for closer coordination among Kurdish political movements across the region, Talabani added that Kurdish parties should work together to achieve their national aspirations.
The PUK and KDP have been engaged in months of negotiations to form the tenth KRG cabinet. While both sides have repeatedly expressed optimism about reaching an agreement, key issues related to power-sharing and the distribution of senior government positions have yet to be resolved.