Jort Posthumus, deputy consul general of Netherlands in Erbil, speaking to Rudaw on January 11, 2023. Photo: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Dutch diplomat on Wednesday told Rudaw that reforms are difficult and challenging but that of Peshmerga forces can bring stability to the Kurdistan Region.
Although the Peshmerga forces are under the authority of the Peshmerga ministry, the force’s two largest units are divided among the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Some Western countries, such as the Netherlands, are helping Peshmerga forces to unite and make reforms.
“I think the reforms in Peshmerga can really contribute to the stability of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq as a whole. However, we all know that reform in [the] security sector is difficult, challenging, [and] it takes time because it is a complicated process,” Jort Posthumus, deputy consul general of Netherlands in Erbil, told Rudaw’s Payam Sarbast.
He added that the reforms are being done “step by step,” noting that “it is important for us to commit together with our international partners … to the Peshmerga reform program, stay involved and make sure that we eventually can make steps in the right direction.”
The US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) overlooks the process of Peshmerga reforms.
Over the past few years, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has put the unification of the Peshmerga forces on its agenda, and while reasonable steps have been taken towards unification and a number of brigades controlled by the PUK and the KDP have been added to the ministry, many remain to do so.
“I think it is clear to everybody that there have been struggles, tensions, and it has had an effect on Peshmerga reform. I don’t think the process has stalled but it has become a bit more difficult,” said Posthumus.
Relations between the KDP and PUK have been thorny in recent years mostly due to political and financial reasons.
US Consul General in Erbil Irvin Hicks Jr. said last week that his country’s support to the Peshmerga would continue despite the tensions between both ruling parties.
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