Kurdistan Democratic Party: No red lines on the renewal of Barham Salih

Kurdistan Democratic Party: No red lines on the renewal of Barham Salih

9-19-2022

Kurdistan Democratic Party - No red lines on the renewal of Barham SalihThe Kurdistan Democratic Party dropped its red lines that it had drawn regarding the presidency of the republic in Iraq, expressing openness to the possibility of supporting the candidate of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the current President Barham Salih.

Iraqi political circles say that this shift in the position of the Kurdistan Democratic Party is mainly due to the conviction of the party led by Massoud Barzani, that there is no need to continue the policy of arm-twisting between it and the Patriotic Union as long as all political forces agree to move forward in early legislative elections.

The circles indicate that Barzani is trying to appear in the guise of the active party in resolving the crisis that Iraq has been witnessing for months, which took a dangerous turn last August, and almost caused a civil war.

Mahma Khalil: The dispute over the law that will be adopted to conduct the elections

Barzani is working with a number of political forces, including forces within the coordination framework, to prepare for an initiative based on holding a meeting with the leader of the Sadrist movement Muqtada al-Sadr in al-Hanana to agree on a transitional phase that paves the way for the legislative elections.

The leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Bassam Ali, said on Sunday that his party does not have red lines on any candidate for the post of President of the Republic of Iraq.

The official of the twelfth branch of the Democratic Party in Halabja explained in a press statement, that “there are understandings with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and that matters are heading towards détente,” adding that it is not possible to use the term “agreement” on the current understandings between the two parties.

Ali stressed that “the position of the Presidency of the Iraqi Republic is an electoral entitlement for the people of Kurdistan, and it is not owned by any party or political force.”

A dispute prevails between the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan over the presidential candidate, as the former insists on nominating his representative, the Minister of Interior in the Kurdistan Region, Riber Ahmed, while the latter adheres to renewing the term of the current president, Barham Salih.

Over the past years, the Presidency of the Republic has been in favor of the National Union led by Bafel Talabani within an implicit agreement to share positions between the two main Kurdish parties, but Barzani’s party has shown since 2018 a desire to put an end to this agreement in light of a desire to monopolize all the leading positions assigned to the Kurdish component.

Since the October elections, the Democratic Party has shown a remarkable insistence that the presidency of the republic will be its share this time, betting on the results it achieved in the entitlement and on the support of its allies the Sadrist movement, and the Sunni Sovereignty Coalition, but the interactions of the crisis with the coordination framework prevented the realization of his endeavor.

On Saturday, Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region and a leader in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, stressed the need for the Kurds to go to Baghdad as one team to negotiate the rights of the region, and then it will not matter who occupies the position of President of the Iraqi Republic and the rest of the positions that are from the share of the second component in the country, according to his expression.

Observers believe that it is not possible to be certain about the Democratic Party’s intention to move forward in supporting the National Union candidate, as this remains subject to reaching a complete and complete agreement on the initiative that is being prepared.

A member of the Iraqi parliament from the Kurdistan Democratic Party bloc, Mahma Khalil, said on Sunday that “Muqtada al-Sadr agreed to receive the delegation consisting of the Democratic Party, the Sovereignty Coalition and the Al-Fateh Alliance to discuss their initiative aimed at getting Iraq out of its crisis, and the leader of the Sadrist movement will receive the delegation in Al-Hanana in the coming days.” .

Mahma Khalil explained in statements to the Kurdish “Rudaw” network that “Al-Sadr agreed to a number of the initiative’s terms, but he still rejected some of them, and the dispute is based on the way to hold early elections, extend the current caretaker government or form a new government.”

The member of the Iraqi parliament considered that the current initiative is different from its predecessors, “because the parties agree to hold early elections, and everyone agrees to form an interim government and then hold early elections, but the parties do not agree on the law that will be adopted in conducting those elections.”

Mahma Khalil believes that “it is very likely that an agreement and a solution to the existing problems will be reached” after the talks that will be conducted by the delegation of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Sovereignty Alliance, and the leader of the Fatah Alliance Hadi al-Amiri with al-Sadr.

The political crisis in Iraq is currently limited to the coordination framework forces’ adherence to the resumption of parliament sessions and the completion of the constitutional entitlements, represented in the election of a president of the republic and a head of a government with full powers, instead of the current caretaker government headed by Mustafa Al-Kazemi.

Leaders from the framework also insist on amending the current election law, which they hold responsible for the regression in the last legislative elections, and for changing the electoral commission, before dissolving parliament and holding early elections.

On the other hand, the Sadrist movement adheres to dissolving Parliament and holding early elections within nine months, which will be supervised by the current caretaker government.

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