In a video posted on X on Thursday, the U.S. Consulate General Erbil underlined that the U.S. partnership with the peshmerga forces has been instrumental in the fight against ISIS, contributing significantly to the safety and security of the United States and the Kurdistan Region.

“For more than a decade we have supported the peshmerga forces by providing them with equipment and training necessary to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS and to stop terrorist threats,” U.S. Consul General in Erbil Steve Bitner said in a video message in Kurdish.

Our partnership with the Peshmerga Forces has been instrumental in the fight against ISIS, contributing significantly to the safety and security of the United States, Iraq, and the IKR. pic.twitter.com/0gI2PbO8Fl

— U.S. Consulate General Erbil (@USCGERBIL) March 13, 2025

“Our recent delivery of howitzers to the peshmerga forces will be crucial for conducting effective military operations against remaining ISIS threats. We are working with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to integrate the peshmerga forces under the command and control of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs (MoPA) to build a professional, unified fighting force.”

Read More: U.S. Provides Artillery Weapons to Peshmerga Forces

Last year in August, the United States provided howitzer cannons to the KRG MoPA during a ceremony.

“Together, we have diminished ISIS’s operational capabilities in Iraq. We look forward to continuing our joint efforts to protect our shared interests.”

The Pentagon’s quarterly inspector general report to the U.S. Congress on February 19 reported that the U.S.-led coalition is planning to increase Coalition assets and multinational personnel at Erbil Air Base in the Kurdistan Region, while handing over al-Assad Airbase to Iraq as part of the transition to a U.S.-Iraqi bilateral security partnership.

In the Kurdistan Region, Coalition advisors are working with the MoPA to implement a four-year reform plan established between the U.S. Department of Defense and the KRG.

Peshmerga soldiers are split between political factions, with 70 units under the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and 80 units under the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). The reform plan seeks to unify partisan peshmerga forces under the MoPA.

Command and control.

Peshmerga instructors of Rayna Staff College attend a class on the Military Decision Making Process taught by the @3rdSFAB near Erbil, Iraq.@CENTCOM @usarmycentral #CJTFOIR #Peshmerga #Training #AdviseAssistEnable pic.twitter.com/qKi831Kn3X

— Operation Inherent Resolve (@CJTFOIR) February 18, 2025

The report noted that the reform project remained on track, highlighting areas of progress and ongoing challenges during the quarter.

The MoPA plans to create 11 divisions by 2026 organized under two area commands with a total personnel strength of 138,000, following the approval of the KRG prime minister and the Kurdistan Region president.

As part of the peshmerga reform plan, the MoPA will also retire 100% of excess forces by October 2026.

Mohammed Salih, a senior fellow at the U.S.-based Foreign Policy Research Institute, told Kurdistan Chronicle that “U.S. support for the peshmerga is critical to regional security and stability. The peshmerga have proven that with the right support they’re capable of countering major regional threats such as ISIS and other destabilizing actors.

“To take this relationship to its full potential, it is important to implement the provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act to provide the peshmerga with strategic weaponry that would allow it to more effectively counter serious security challenges and ensure the safety of the Kurdistan Region as an important U.S. partner and safe haven for various religious and ethnic minorities in a volatile region.”