Baghdad and Erbil form “joint forces” to control the lines of contact in the disputed areas
The commander of the second axis (Qaratappah and Hamrin) in the Peshmerga forces, Major General Mardan Jawshin, announced on Wednesday that he would proceed with the formation of two joint brigades from the Iraqi army forces and the Peshmerga forces. To extend control over the line of contact in the disputed areas between Erbil and Baghdad.
Major General Jawshin said, in a press statement, that “there is a tendency to form two joint brigades consisting of Arab and Kurdish components, to be deployed in those areas of common interest to the Kurdistan Regional Government and the federal government.”
He referred to previous proposals presented by the Kurdish side to extend control over those areas jointly. However, “a good compromise was found for this matter by forming two joint brigades in those areas.”
The announcement of the formation of the two joint brigades to control the lines of contact in the disputed areas, in accordance with Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution, comes a few months after the formation of two joint brigades between the federal forces and the Peshmerga to control the Iraqi-Iranian border from the Kurdistan region, where the Iranian Kurdish opposition parties are located in those areas. .
The formation of the two brigades was part of the agreement concluded by the Iraqi government with the Iranian side, last March, which stipulates the disarming of the Iranian opposition, removing them from the border areas and changing their description to refugees.
While it was agreed to implement the agreement by the nineteenth of last September, the Iranian side continued to threaten that if the provisions of the agreement were not fully implemented, it would resume bombing the territory of the Kurdistan region, at a time when Baghdad confirmed that it had implemented all the provisions of the aforementioned agreement, which is What was recently announced by Iraqi National Security Advisor Qasim Al-Araji during his visit to Tehran, last Monday, at the head of a delegation representing the Supreme Technical Committee for implementing the agreement.
Kirkuk knot
While Baghdad has not yet issued a position regarding the Kurdish military commander’s statements, the formation of these two brigades comes in implementation of a previous agreement between the two parties dating back about two years, but it was postponed due to the lack of sufficient financial allocations, as well as the logistical procedures that precede the implementation of such agreements.
The formation of the two brigades comes within the joint coordination agreement between the Ministries of Defense and the Peshmerga, which includes four items: The first is to open joint coordination centers, the second is to address security gaps between the army and the Peshmerga, the third is to open and set up joint checkpoints between the two sides, and the fourth is expansion operations in the axes to comb the sectors and pursue ISIS hotspots and nests, in addition to exchanging security and intelligence information to combat terrorism.
The Kurdish Peshmerga forces controlled most of the disputed areas, including Kirkuk Governorate, which is considered the largest node in the implementation of Article 140 of the Constitution until 2017, after the federal forces took control of Kirkuk and the disputed areas, following the Kurdish referendum in September 2017. This provided the groundwork for the Iraqi government at the time, headed by Haider al-Abadi, to regain control over all the disputed areas.
Despite the involvement of the Kurdish forces through the two main parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union, in the state administration coalition that formed the current government headed by Muhammad Shia al-Sudani, Kirkuk witnessed unrest last month, following the Democratic Party’s attempt to regain its headquarters in Kirkuk.
Although the process of handing over the headquarters to the parties, including the Kurdistan Democratic Party, is part of the political agreement document, the crisis of trust that governs the relationship between the two parties led to demonstrations and sit-ins that resulted in deaths and injuries before the two parties reached a temporary settlement of the crisis.
Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani had called for a dialogue that would work to sustain the stability of the Kurdistan region and Iraq.
Al-Sudani said, in his speech during the memorial service for the late President Mam Jalal Talabani, last Tuesday, that “all the problems that may arise amidst the current circumstances and challenges that the Iraqi Kurdistan region faces, just as the rest of our country faces, can be solved through the spirit of sublimation and working toward Giving priority to the interests of our people.”
He added, “The dialogue that we always call for is the path to sustaining the stability that we want for the region, which is necessarily reflected in the stability of Iraq,” explaining: “We enjoy the independence of the national decision and the unity of the ranks of our people, which enabled us to defeat terrorism and protect our land,” stressing that “ The ability, certainly, to impose the will of the constitution, protect Iraqi soil from all abuse, and preserve its sovereignty, is a responsible national commitment from which we will not deviate.
2023-10-04 14:35:58
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