Erbil summit meeting: between denial and confirmation… Will the presidential issue be resolved this week?
Erbil summit meeting: between denial and confirmation… Will the presidential issue be resolved this week?
2-14-2026
The presidential election crisis is teetering between the hammer of leaks suggesting an imminent breakthrough and the anvil of political denials surrounding the details of the Kurdish-Kurdish agreement.
While the political scene awaits the announcement of a compromise candidate, interpretations within parliamentary circles vary regarding the outcome of the recent summit meeting between Masoud Barzani and Bafel Talabani in Erbil. Burhan Sheikh Raouf, a leader in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), expressed
cautious optimism in a statement to Al-Maalomah News Agency, confirming a preliminary agreement reached during the recent Erbil meetings. He clarified that the precise details regarding the candidate’s name have not yet been revealed. He praised the role of the coordination framework as a mediator in bridging the gap between the two Kurdish factions.
Meanwhile, Badr Bloc MP Mukhtar al-Moussawi predicted that Sunday would see the official announcement of a “solution formula,” either through an agreement on a single compromise candidate or by presenting two candidates to Parliament and allowing the MPs to make the final decision.
Al-Moussawi told Al-Maalomah News Agency that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) had reached an agreement on the presidency, but the mechanism for resolving the issue—whether through a single compromise candidate or through competition within parliament—had not yet been revealed.
He added that Sunday might witness the official announcement of a resolution to the long-standing crisis, noting that the Coordination Framework forces had finalized their position and left the vote to the MPs should the competition between the two Kurdish candidates continue. However, if a single candidate is agreed upon, support will be collective to ensure his passage. On the other side, a
narrative of skepticism emerged, with MP Firas al-Muslawi, spokesperson for the Reconstruction and Development Bloc, stating that reports of a final agreement were “inaccurate.” He cited Kurdish sources that had not disclosed a final solution, suggesting the existence of unresolved technical or political obstacles.
The spokesperson for the bloc, Firas al-Muslawi, told the Al-Maalomah news agency that “Nouri al-Maliki, head of the State of Law Coalition, remains the sole and primary candidate of the Coordination Framework for forming the next government.” He explained that “once the presidency is decided, the procedures for appointing al-Maliki will proceed immediately without delay.”
He added that “the Coordination Framework manages its decisions according to two fixed patterns: either national consensus among the forces within it, or reliance on the majority opinion on strategic issues.”
He emphasized that “the Framework continues its pressure and contacts with the two Kurdish parties to end the deadlock and push for agreement on a single candidate for the presidency to ensure the fulfillment of constitutional requirements.”
Regarding the Kurdish movement, al-Muslawi indicated that “what some media outlets are promoting about a final agreement between the two Kurdish parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, is inaccurate,” noting that “information received from Kurdish sources has not confirmed this so far.”
The ball is in the Kurds’ court.
Amidst denials and confirmations, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan’s statement regarding the “positive” nature of the Barzani-Talabani meeting remains the most prominent thread that political forces are clinging to in order to escape the constitutional deadlock. They await the official announcement expected in the coming hours, which may end the debate surrounding the identity of the new occupant of the Presidential Palace and put an end to one of the most complex political crises in the country.
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