-Kurdistan Regional Government confirmed that it has a force equivalent to an armed regular army with tanks and guns. Our forced number now is 190 thousand people and Kurdistan has a professional army, but it does not seek to break away from federal Iraq.

Kurdistan Regional Government confirmed that it has a force equivalent to an armed regular army with tanks and guns. Our forced number now is 190 thousand people and Kurdistan has a professional army, but it does not seek to break away from federal Iraq.

Shafaaq News reported that Kurdistan Region Peshmerga minister, Sheikh Jaafar Sheikh Mustafa accused to the AL-Hayat Newspaper, the federal government of its cease from paying the Regional guards (Peshmerga) budget since 2007, despite approving it by the Iraqi parliament.

He considered the rumours about attempts to get fighter helicopters and other weapons with Iraqi Government as attempts to “chauvinism allegations to mobilize hostility against Kurds.”

Over the reality of his troops now in terms of number and agreements with the federal government he said, "So far there is no agreement between Erbil and the federal government over the number of the Peshmerga elements. But our forces number now is 190 thousand people."

"There were dialogues and agreement principles with the Centre over the past years to reduce this large number by transmitting 90 thousand of them to retirement and transfer 30 thousand to the Federal Ministry of Defense to form two divisions in the army within the region, as the rest undertake the guarding mission , aided by the internal security forces to impose the rule of law within cities if police requested their support, and support the federal forces in the prevention of external threats if the region was exposed to attacks from neighboring countries,” Minister of Peshmerga added .