The meeting of the politburos comes days after the PUK and Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani’s return to weekly cabinet meetings of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), following a five-month hiatus due to disagreements between the ruling parties.
“Both sides agreed and were eager to strengthen the Kurdistan Region’s constitutional structure and hastening the legal and political steps to facilitate the holding of the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections on its scheduled time this year,” read a joint statement from the two parties.
In the statement, both parties expressed their hope towards continued cooperation and eliminating the gaps of the past, adding that they have decided to “work together as one team” and hold more meetings in hopes of removing the obstacles hindering the holding of elections.
PUK leader Bafel Talabani said he was optimistic that the elections would occur on their scheduled time, but stressed that there are still some details pending resolution.
“There are still some problems relating to the elections. The elections will happen, but there are some details that need to be addressed,” the PUK leader told Rudaw’s Peshawa Bakhtyar and other reporters about the elections.
The Council of Ministers in Sunday’s meeting approved reorganizing the Region’s financial system and centralizing its revenue sources, a point highly demanded by the PUK for months.
The PUK leader said he was happy to see the progress made and to know that civil servant salaries will be prioritized in expenditure under the newly-approved project.
The rapprochement between the KDP and the PUK comes as the Kurdistan Region approaches its long-anticipated parliamentary elections.
The Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections are set to be held on November 18, over a year removed from its originally scheduled date. The Region was set to hold the elections last year, but was postponed due to continued disagreements between the blocs over the current electoral law and the electoral commission.
The blocs are yet to reach an understanding on this issue, which could threaten a further delay the elections process.
