ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The two victors of the latest parliamentary elections of the Kurdistan Region came together on Thursday in Erbil to discuss their vision for the next government cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and developments in the formation process.

Negotiating delegations of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) met on Thursday at the latter’s politburo in Erbil. In a joint statement after the meeting, the two parties stressed that cooperation regarding their shared vision for the "next phase" of governance in the Kurdistan Region has seen "major development."

"Both sides agreed on the need to intensify serious efforts for the sixth term of the Kurdistan [Region's] parliament to start its regular and legislative duties and activities in September, and the next steps of forming the new government cabinet must continue," read the statement.

The KDP and PUK emerged as the main parties from the October 20 parliamentary elections, gaining 39 and 23 seats, respectively. The Kurdistan Region’s newly elected members of parliament were sworn in early December, officially commencing their legislative duties.

The two parties are poised to team up to form the next government cabinet, with numerous meetings having been held between both sides towards that end. A “final draft” outlining the formation of the cabinet was reached between the two parties on March 18, which has been followed by multiple rounds of talks since between the two election winners.

The two sides met at the executive level in late April, when Kurdistan Region Prime Minister and Deputy KDP President Masrour Barzani met with Bafel Talabani, the leader of the PUK, in Dukan. Prior to this, sources told The New Region that the meetings will be decisive and will see discussions around “the distribution of posts.”