ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The US State Department on Saturday called on all parties to “swiftly” work on matters that strengthen the Kurdistan Region’s institutions, amid heightened tension between its ruling parties over the parliament’s convening after a two-year deadlock.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) parliament convened on Wednesday after a two-year hiatus, with the session seeing the presidency board members elected as a continuation of the first session held in 2024.

Of the two largest parties in the Kurdistan Region, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) participated in the session, while the the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) boycotted it. Despite the latter's absence, quorum was successfully reached as a result of the participation of defecting MPs from the PUK and other abstaining blocs, who asserted that the restoration of the legislature constituted a public duty.

A day after the parliament session, PUK leader Bafel Talabani announced that the party will withdraw from the KRG and revealed plans for a potential separate government.

The PUK on Saturday said its Board of Government held a meeting where they discussed “the political and administrative situation in the Kurdistan Region, with particular emphasis on making the necessary preparations to implement the decisions of President Bafel Jalal Talabani” vis-a-vis the party's withdrawal from the KRG.

“We encourage all parties to work swiftly and constructively on matters that strengthen the Region’s institutions,” a State Department official told The New Region.

“The United States supports a strong and resilient Iraqi Kurdistan Region, which remains a foundational pillar of the broader US-Iraq relationship,” they added.

Washington has long sought to mediate in KDP-PUK disputes and foster unity within the Kurdistan Region, having repeatedly called for the reactivation of parliament and the end of the deadlock brought about following the 2024 elections.