Shafaq News- Kirkuk

Four Turkmen figures have emerged as possible successors to Kirkuk Governor Mohammed Samaan Agha, who is being considered for a federal cabinet post, a political source told Shafaq News on Saturday.

Provincial Council member Ahmed Ramzi Koperlu is among the candidates, alongside three other Turkmen figures. The nominations are part of a political agreement to keep the governorship with the Turkmen community, the source said.

He added that Samaan Agha is being considered for Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, but the proposal faces objections from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) over concerns that the proposed portfolio could overlap with the Foreign Ministry, headed by Fouad Hussein. Talks are under way between Turkmen representatives and the KDP to resolve the dispute over the proposed portfolio.

A second source told Shafaq News, however, that Samaan Agha is being considered for the Ministry of State for Provincial Affairs.

Samaan Agha became Kirkuk governor on April 16 and has led the Iraqi Turkmen Front since 2025. He is the first Turkmen to hold the governorship in decades.