Shafaq News– Baghdad

Leaders of the Coordination Framework, the largest bloc in Iraq’s parliament, held talks with senior figures from the Kurdistan Region’s two main parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), in a bid to resolve the deadlock over naming a president of the republic within constitutional limits, an Iraqi official told Shafaq News on Tuesday.

Nasim Abdullah, a member of the political bureau of the Iqtidar Al‑Watan (National Capability) party, which is part of the Coordination Framework, noted that the talks will continue until Wednesday to reach final solutions, adding that both sides have reached “an initial understanding on several proposals, including linking the formation of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the selection of the Iraqi president within a single package.”

Meanwhile, the KDP candidate and Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein announced in a post on X that he met with the PUK official and the Kurdish Deputy PM Qubad Talabani, adding that the meeting focused on the formation of both the federal government and the KRG, as well as the presidential nomination. He described the discussions as frank and transparent, and said that the two sides agreed to continue dialogue in the coming days in a way that serves both governments.

Earlier today, Parliament Speaker Haibet Al-Halbousi postponed the presidential election session due to a lack of quorum, saying only 85 lawmakers were in attendance. He added that he had received a request from Kurdish blocs to delay the session to allow more time for consultations and agreement between the two parties.

Under Iraq’s constitution, parliament must elect a president within 30 days of its first session. With the inaugural sitting held on December 29, 2025, the deadline expires on the night of January 28, 2026, leaving little room for further delay. Since 2005, Iraq’s power-sharing system has allocated the presidency to the Kurds, traditionally held by the PUK, while Shiite parties control the premiership and Sunni blocs the speakership.

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