Ice between Erbil and Baghdad is ‘melting’ says Kirkuk governor

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Erbil and Baghdad are rebuilding ties, melting the “iceberg” between their two governments, said the governor of Kirkuk describing a recent high-level visit to Baghdad led by Kurdish President Masoud Barzani.

 

“The visit was a great beginning to lay the groundwork of preparations for the Mosul liberation operation,” said Najmadin Karim, Kirkuk’s governor, in a meeting with the city’s local officials including Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen and other minorities groups.

 

“This visit melted the iceberg between Baghdad and Erbil,” in terms of their bilateral relations, he said.

 

Karim, who is also a senior member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), added that as battles against the Islamic State (ISIS) are intensifying on multiple fronts and the group continues to lose territory, meetings between Baghdad and Erbil are “important.”

 

Mosul fell to ISIS on June 10, 2014.  An offensive to retake the city is anticipated to begin this month involving the Peshmerga, Iraqi forces and the US-led coalition.

 

Karim also addressed issues between Baghdad and Erbil which rose as a result of the central government freezing Erbil’s budget share in 2014.

 

The problems can only be resolved through dialogue, he argued, “and I hope they maintain it to reach a possible solution for the problems.”

 

A high-level Kurdish delegation led by Barzani arrived in Baghdad Thursday morning for negotiations with Iraqi leaders on a range of issues, including budgetary disputes between the two capitals and a roadmap for the post-Mosul offensive.

 

The delegation met with Abadi and other senior Iraqi leaders from the Iraqi National Alliance and the Sadr front.

 

The visit of the Kurdish delegation to Baghdad is considered positive, opening a new page in relations between the two governments.