ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Internal Kurdish political disputes “really undermine” the power the Kurdistan Region holds in Baghdad, the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iraq and Iran Victoria Taylor said on Wednesday.
The two main ruling parties - the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) - have been at loggerheads for years but the relation between the two is at a historic low over over a variety of issues, with their disagreements hindering the political process in the Kurdistan Region but also playing out in Baghdad.
Taylor suggested that the two parties should present a united front when negotiating in Baghdad as to not undermine their position and the power they possess.
“Ensuring a strong and resillient IKR [Kurdistan Region] is very clearly in our interests,” she stated.
Disagreements between the KDP and PUK have increased since disputes on the election law and electoral commission, which resulted in the delay of parliamentary elections. The Region’s parliament then extended its term for another year, sparking criticism both within the Kurdistan Region and from the government in Baghdad.
“There is no greater supporter, no bigger champion for the Iraqi Kurdistan Region than the United States. We are still here, we are going to remain engaged, and we will continue to expand our partnership,” Taylor affirmed.
She also stressed the longstanding strategic partnership that exists between the US and Iraq, adding that they are continously working to encourage de-escalation in the region.
“We see opportunities from US companies to explore opportunities in both federal Iraq and the Iraqi Kurdistan Region,” Taylor said, adding that the US shares Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani’s goal to ensure that Iraq becomes “energy independent.”
“We are still here, we still care, and we are still engaged,” Taylor reiterated about Washington in Iraq.
The US security relationship with Iraq fully transitioned into an advising and assisting role in December 2021 and there are currently about 2,500 US troops in Iraq, including in the Kurdistan Region.
“A key to improving security and stability is the efforts that we have made together to confront and combat ISIS and to increase the capacity of security forces both in the IKR and Iraq more broadly,” Taylor said.
During a visit to Baghdad earlier this month, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that Washington’s sole purpose for staying in Iraq is its focus on ensuring the defeat of ISIS.
The global coalition against ISIS was formally established in October 2014, after ISIS took control of vast swathes of territories in Iraq and Syria. Consisting of 79 nations and five international organizations, the US-led coalition seeks to ensure ISIS’s “enduring defeat.”
The Strategic Framework Agreement, which went into effect in 2009, seeks to normalize Baghdad-Washington relations through setting long-term bilateral economic, diplomatic, cultural, and security cooperation.
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