The latest round of negotiations has been launched between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the two primary political parties in Iraqi Kurdistan, regarding the formation of the tenth cabinet of the Kurdistan Region. The Kurdistan Region conducted its long-delayed parliamentary elections in October 2024, with the KDP obtaining 39 of the 100 seats and the PUK securing 23. With no party commanding a majority, negotiations for government formation have been ongoing for several months but have recently reached an impasse, allegedly due to disagreements regarding governance procedures and critical appointments.

To obtain further information regarding the current negotiations, Manish Rai, a geopolitical analyst based in Sydney, Australia, interviewed Mr. Karwan Gaznay, the spokesperson for PUK, at the party’s headquarters in Sulaymaniyah. In this interview, Mr. Gaznay stated that without PUK’s involvement, no government can be established in Kurdistan, and they aim to finalize the discussions with a comprehensive agreement. The detailed interview with Mr. Karwan follows.

Question: It has been over a year since the elections in Kurdistan, yet there remains no indication of government formation. Could you please explain the reasons for the delay in establishing the government?

Gaznay: We, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, would like to have a service-based government in all the cities of the Kurdistan Region. We do not want a government that discriminates or differentiates between the cities of the Kurdistan Region under any........

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