KRG PM: Economy, jobs for youth among Kurds' concerns for Iraq new government
Barzani’s words came during an interview in Baghdad with al-Iraqiya, a state-owned media organization, after a meeting in the capital with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.
Monday’s visit marked the fourth time the two leaders have met since the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum in September.
“What concerns us [the Kurdistan Region] is the formation of a bloc that serves the interests of all Iraqis and is focused on providing services and reviving the economy,” Barzani told al-Iraqiya.
Lack of public services in Iraq in general, electricity supply for the sweltering summer in particular, and high unemployment rates have sparked a series of protests in central and southern provinces of the country for nearly a month, including Baghdad.
“What is also important for the Kurds is to form a coalition that can be relied upon to provide job opportunities for the youth of Iraq,” he added.
Summarizing the meeting with Abadi, PM Barzani said they “discussed many issues, including the reopening of the roads connecting Erbil to Kirkuk as well as Duhok to Mosul.”
On Sunday, Baghdad revealed they had agreed with the KRG to reopen the Erbil – Kirkuk road, adding that work to rebuild the bridge in Altun Kupri (Perde), a town in the northwestern part of Kirkuk Province.
The bridge was damaged beyond use by the clashes that followed the Iraqi offensive on disputed areas last October—following the referendum—including Perde.
Working on strengthening relations, Barzani and Abadi had stressed the need for “every effort to solve the problems between Erbil and Baghdad based on the Iraqi Constitution.”
Leading politicians in the Kurdistan Region, including PM Barzani, have called for Kurdish unity in Baghdad to address the Constitutional rights of their people during the May 12 parliamentary election.
Parliament contested the election results and called for a manual recount of the votes—currently ongoing but nearly over—after which the process to form a government can commence.
“We are awaiting the approval of the Federal Supreme Court on the results of the elections, and we highlighted that we need to speed up the formation of the next government as soon as possible.”
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany
