ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The New Generation Movement (NGM) said on Tuesday that it will not partake in the Kurdistan Region’s next government and will remain in opposition, despite a formal alliance with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

“As the New Generation Movement, we will not participate in the new government under any circumstances, and we will remain in opposition,” the party’s spokesperson Himdad Shahin said in a statement. 

The decision comes despite a formal alliance between the NGM and the PUK – which hold 15 and 23 seats in the Kurdistan parliament respectively – that sought to challenge the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party’s (KDP) 39 seats and hold talks as a unified bloc to form the Region’s long-overdue next government. 

The Kurdistan Region held parliamentary elections in October 2024. However, nearly two years after the vote, the next Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has yet to be formed as negotiations, particularly between the KDP and PUK, have repeatedly stalled. 

In early June, the PUK said it would negotiate alongside the NGM as “one package” in talks with the KDP. However, the KDP has reportedly insisted on engaging with the PUK and NGM as separate political parties, rather than recognizing their alliance as a single bloc.

In December 2024, newly elected Kurdish lawmakers were sworn in during the first session of the new parliament cycle. Despite this, no subsequent sessions have been held since, and the parliament has remained inactive.

The KDP and PUK, though rival parties, have traditionally formed and run the KRG together.