During his official visit to Baghdad on Wednesday, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani held talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, discussing Erbil-Baghdad ties and regional developments. Additionally, he joined the official State Administration Coalition meeting, where discussions underlined the importance of disarming Iran-backed Iraqi factions.

According to the readout from the Kurdistan Region Presidency, President Nechirvan Barzani reaffirmed the Kurdistan Region’s support for the federal government’s initiatives and programs, emphasizing the importance of cooperation for their successful implementation to benefit all communities in Iraq and enhance the country’s stability.

The meeting also addressed relations between Erbil and Baghdad, highlighting the need to strengthen mutual cooperation. Both leaders underscored the importance of political unity and continued coordination among state institutions to safeguard the country against potential threats and challenges.

On Wednesday, Kurdistan Region Presidency Spokesperson Dilshad Shahab announced that President Nechirvan Barzani would take part in a meeting of the State Administration Coalition, a political alliance of the political parties that form Iraq’s current government.

On a post on X on Thursday, President Nechirvan Barzani confirmed that during the State Administration meeting participants “reaffirmed [their] commitment to moving forward with implementing the government’s program, fulfilling its obligations, and achieving national priorities, particularly those related to strengthening security and stability and improving the quality of services provided to citizens.”

Since June, the Iraqi federal government has carried out an anti-corruption campaign and confiscated large amounts of money and gold from suspects.

Furthermore, the participants also “stressed the importance of implementing the decision to restrict weapons to the hands of the state in order to strengthen the rule of law and preserve Iraq’s security and stability.” 

Iraq has given pro-Iranian militias until September to disarm.

“We emphasized that Iraq should remain a source of stability in the region and must not become a launching point or arena for threatening neighboring countries or any other states,” President Nechirvan Barzani said.

“Finally, we reaffirmed our full support for Prime Minister [al-Zaidi] and the government in implementing its program and measures aimed at enhancing stability, and pledged to work with a shared sense of national responsibility to confront the current challenges in a way that safeguards the supreme interests of our people and advances the path of development and stability.”

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