President Barzani, McGurk discuss resolving Erbil-Baghdad issues

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani stressed Monday the need to resolve outstanding issues between Erbil and Baghdad in a meeting with the White House’s top Middle East official, calling the latest Iraqi government formation a window of opportunity to solve the disputes.

“The President stressed that with the establishment of the new Iraqi federal government, an opportunity has emerged to resolve the issues on the basis of the Constitution and federalism,” a statement from the president’s office reads following his meeting with Brett McGurk, the White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa.

McGurk arrived in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region on Monday to meet with senior officials. Prior to his meeting with President Barzani, he was in Baghdad for a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani.

The American envoy reiterated his country’s “readiness to expand relations with Baghdad and Erbil” and the need to resolve ongoing disputes during the meeting with the president.

Tensions between the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have been high ever since an Iraqi Federal Supreme Court ruling in February challenging the legality of the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas law, deeming it “unconstitutional.”

The court ruling struck down the independence of the Region’s energy sector, jeopardizing its industry. The decision has been repeatedly challenged and widely condemned by Kurdish authorities.

Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Sunday said that a set of “preliminary understandings” have been reached with Baghdad over pressing issues between the regional and federal governments, such as the drafting of an Iraqi oil and gas law.

In November, Sudani stressed Erbil and Baghdad’s readiness to resolve the outstanding issues, urging the need for the disputes to be resolved “professionally.”

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