ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani on Friday congratulated Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on assuming office, reaffirming the Kurdistan Region’s readiness to cooperate with the new federal cabinet within the framework of the constitution to resolve “all outstanding issues” between Erbil and Baghdad.
“I extend my warmest congratulations to my dear brother Mr. Ali Falih al-Zaidi, Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Iraq, on gaining the confidence of the Iraqi Council of Representatives and on the commencement of his cabinet’s duties,” President Barzani said in a statement from the Kurdistan Region Presidency.
The Kurdish leader wished Zaidi and his cabinet “every success in carrying out their significant responsibilities,” expressing hope that the new government would “mark the beginning of a new phase of stability and progress for all of Iraq.”
Iraqi ruling Shiite Coordination Framework - the largest bloc in parliament, holding 174 seats in the 329-member legislature - in late April named Zaidi as its candidate for prime minister, a post traditionally held by a Shiite.
Lawmakers on Thursday gave its vote of confidence in Zaidi, approving his government program and 14 members of his cabinet line-up, this while votes on nine remaining ministerial positions, including the crucial defense and interior portfolios, were deferred.
President Barzani also reaffirmed the Kurdistan Region’s “full readiness to work jointly with the federal government on the basis of the constitution, genuine partnership, and balance, with the aim of resolving all outstanding issues and ensuring and protecting the constitutional rights of all components.”
He added that “Iraq is a wealthy country with great potential, and Iraqis of all components deserve a dignified life, better services, and lasting security and stability,” expressing confidence that through the efforts of all parties, “We can move toward a better future and confront all challenges and problems together.”
Crucially, a prominent Kurdish lawmaker told Rudaw on Thursday that the decade-long dispute between the Kurdistan Region and Baghdad over civil servant salaries was incorporated into Ali al-Zaidi’s ministerial program, following an agreement between Nechirvan Barzani and the Coordination Framework.
“An agreement has been reached to address the stalled salaries of civil servants in the Kurdistan Region,” Ashwaq Jaf, a senior member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) bloc in the Iraqi parliament, said on Thursday.
She added that “one of the key points Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani agreed on with the Coordination Framework parties in Baghdad was resolving the salaries issue, and based on this agreement, the matter has been included in the [incoming] Iraqi government’s ministerial program.”
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