ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkish Ambassador to Iraq Anil Bora Inan held a rare meeting with Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani in Erbil to discuss “political developments” in Iraq and the region, Ankara’s diplomatic mission said.
The meeting comes after years of strained ties and weeks after a Turkmen governor was appointed to lead the multiethnic province of Kirkuk following the resignation of the PUK’s Kurdish governor, a move Ankara hailed as recognition of the Turkmen community’s rights.
“Current political developments in Iraq and the region were discussed,” Ankara’s diplomatic mission in Baghdad said in a statement on X, noting attendance of the PUK leader’s brother and Kurdistan Region Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani.
Meanwhile, Bafel Talabani remarked that the talks emphasized “coordination and cooperation between the parties to resolve issues peacefully.”
The PUK leader added in a statement that the meeting discussed the stalled formation of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) tenth cabinet and that he presented his party’s “vision,” while affirming that “the upcoming government must uphold balance and partnership.”
The meeting comes amid a prolonged political deadlock in the Kurdistan Region, where rival parties have yet to agree on a formula for the next regional cabinet more than 19 months after parliamentary elections were held in October 2024.
In the ballot, the Region’s ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) won 39 seats, while the PUK secured 23 seats in the 100-seat legislature, with no party achieving a majority. The ensuing government formation talks have stalled due to disputes over governance structures and key government posts.
In his Friday statement, the PUK leader further noted that the meeting with Ankara’s top diplomat in Baghdad addressed “the situation in Kirkuk,” with the Turkish ambassador “praising” the party and its leader’s role in “bringing parties closer together and strengthening the spirit of coexistence.”
Inan reportedly described the “political agreements” in the ethnically and religiously diverse province as “an important step toward better serving Kirkuk and deepening brotherhood among its different ethnicities and communities.”
Mohammed Samaan Agha, head of the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF), was elected governor of Kirkuk in mid-April, becoming the first Turkmen to hold the post since its establishment in 1924.
Agha’s election followed the resignation of former governor and senior PUK figure Rebwar Taha, who had served as Kirkuk’s Kurdish governor since 2017.
Under a political agreement in the 16-seat provincial council, Agha secured 14 votes. The KDP boycotted the session, citing opposition to the political maneuvering behind the vote.
Although Kirkuk’s demography has not been officially determined on an ethnic basis, and the Turkmen population holds only two seats on the provincial council, Ankara views it as part of the Turkic World - an ideological and cultural construct rooted in both historical and nationalist thought.
Turkey’s foreign ministry, in late April, welcomed Agha’s appointment as “an extremely important and historic development in terms of inclusivity, fair representation, and strengthening social peace,” describing it as a “delayed recognition of a legitimate right for our Turkmen kin, who are an essential component of Iraq and Kirkuk.”
The key meeting between the PUK leader and the Turkish diplomat also comes Turkey imposed a flight ban on the airport on April 3, 2023, in response to an alleged “intensification” of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) activity in Sulaimani province, referring to the crash of two helicopters carrying Syrian Kurdish fighters a month earlier.
The apparent thaw in relations between Ankara and the PUK comes after years of tension.
These tensions are largely driven by Turkey’s perception that the PUK tolerates - or even coordinates with - the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which Ankara designates as a terrorist organization, citing separatist activities, as well as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Turkey considers an extension of the PKK in Syria. The SDF has repeatedly denied the latter claims.
The rapprochement also comes as Turkey resumed flights to Sulaimani International Airport - the PUK’s stronghold province - in early November, after a suspension lasting two and a half years.
Ankara had imposed the flight ban in April 2023, in response to what it said was “intensified” PKK activity in the province, following the crash of two helicopters carrying Syrian Kurdish fighters in March of that year.
