KRG Deputy PM: New Kurdish cabinet impossible without PUK

Shafaq News – Erbil

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani asserted on Sunday that forming a new Kurdish cabinet is impossible without the participation of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

Speaking at a press conference, Talabani—also a senior PUK leader—said that any future government must embody real partnership among the Region’s main political forces.

The Kurdistan Region has remained in political gridlock for nearly a year since the October 2024 elections, with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) emerging as the leading party by winning 39 out of 100 seats, while the PUK secured 23 seats. Despite briefly convening parliament on December 3, lawmakers failed to elect a speaker or advance cabinet formation, leaving the legislature suspended amid deepening KDP–PUK tensions.

Earlier this month, the KDP accused the PUK of delaying an agreement on forming the new Kurdish government until after Iraq’s November 11 parliamentary elections, saying that both parties had reached understandings on political, economic, and security matters, while charging that the PUK declined to proceed despite what it described as a balanced proposal granting it senior positions, including the parliamentary speakership and several key ministries.

Read more: Six months of stalemate: Kurdistan’s government formation crisis deepens