KDP to start new rounds of negotiation with Baghdad and other Kurdish forces regarding the Kurdish entitlements

Shafaq News/ The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), led by Masoud Barzani, revealed that negotiations with Kurdish and political parties will start in Baghdad in early 2022.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party came first at the level of Kurdistan and fourth at the level of Iraq in terms of the number of seats it won in the recent elections (31 parliamentary seats.)

A member of the Party's leadership council, Ari Hersin, told Shafaq News Agency that the KDP delegations would start a new round of talks inside and outside the Region to discuss the form of the new Iraqi government and the position of the Kurds in this regard.

He added that the Democratic Party has achieved a stride in forming the new Iraqi government and that the bilateral rapprochement between the Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) will contribute to "unifying Kurdish visions and opening up to other Kurdish parties, including those who lost in October elections."

Hersin indicated that the Kurdish delegation will discuss with the Shiite and Sunni forces the constitutional rights of the Kurdish people, such as the file of the disputed areas, the Region's share in the federal budget, and "other rights of the people of Kurdistan."

Concerning the Kurdish entitlements, the Official affirmed that the posts of the Iraqi presidency and the governance of Kirkuk are Kurdish entitlements, according to the political consensus on which the political process was built.

Meanwhile, the KDP submitted two political papers related to forming the Iraqi government, the first for the Kurdish parties and the second for the political forces in Baghdad.

A source told our Agency, the first paper included that the position of the Presidency of Iraq is of the Kurds' share, and whoever holds the position must "abdicate to other Kurdish forces the position of Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament and one of the two ministries (finance or foreign affairs).

According to our source, the second paper, which is directed to the Iraqi forces, included that the Kirkuk Governor's position would be for the Kurds, in addition to Baghdad's commitment to allocate 17% of the federal budget to the Region, as well as normalizing the situation in the disputed areas to what it was before the October 16 events, as well as other items.

On Monday, the Federal Supreme Court ratified the results of the Iraqi parliamentary elections that were held on October 10.

By taking this decision, the Federal Court resolved a three-month controversy over the election results, which were rejected by some blocs, including the Shiite Coordination Framework that escalated its position by protesting for more than two months in front of the gates of the Highly-fortified Green Zone in Baghdad.

The final results showed that the Sadrist Movement led by Muqtada al-Sadr won 73 seats, followed by the "Progress (Takadum)" Coalition led by Muhammad al-Halbousi with 37 seats. Next, the State of Law Coalition led by former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki with 33 seats, then the Kurdistan Democratic Party led by Masoud Barzani with 31 seats.

Compared with 2018 results, The Al-Fateh Alliance lost 31 seats, taking only 17 seats in the last elections.

Under the constitution, the Iraqi President, Barham Salih, must call the new Parliament to convene within 15 days from the date of the Federal Court's approval of the election results.

The results showed that the Sadrist bloc led by al-Sadr topped the elections with 73 seats out of 329, followed by the "Progress" coalition with 37 seats, the "State of Law" coalition with 33 seats, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party with 31 seats.

Earlier, a political source said that the new Iraqi Parliament will hold its first session on Monday, January 10, 2022

A source revealed that the eldest deputy among the winners in the recent elections, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, would head the first session of the House of Representatives in its fifth session.

It is worth noting that Al-Mashhadani, associated with Al-Azm Coalition born in 1948 and chaired the Iraqi Parliament from 2006 to 2009.