Iraqi PM meets first Kurdish delegation since independence referendum
(Article brought in from Charles Bright)


Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi received a delegation of Kurdish parties in Baghdad on Thursday. This was the first such delegation since the autonomous Kurdish Region organised an independence referendum in September last year.

A statement issued by the Iraqi government said that Abadi stressed Iraq’s unity during the meeting as well as its ethnic and sectarian diversity.

“United we were able to win against Daesh because the responsibility entrusted to us is to take care of all Iraqi citizens,” the Prime Minister told the delegation. “The central government continues to secure employees’ salaries in the region clearly and fairly, and according to a precise process.”

The delegation members mentioned the problems between the central government and the region, which they said should be resolved within the constitution. Representatives of the Movement for Change, the Islamic Group and the coalition for Democracy and Justice, which opposed the referendum, were included in the delegation.

Tension between the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Region erupted after Erbil organised the referendum last year. The national government rejected the poll as “unconstitutional” and refused to engage in dialogue with the region until the results were declared null and void.

Tension between the government in Baghdad and the regional administration in Erbil has escalated over the past few months. Officials on both sides say that negotiations could be held soon in order to contain.

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