Karwan Yarwais: Kurdish Agreement Needed to Break Regional Political Deadlock

PUKMEDIA

Former PUK MP Karwan Yarwais.

The three-day window set by the Iraqi parliament for submitting nominations for the presidency is due to close at the end of official working hours today, Monday, 5 January 2026. Political forces in Baghdad are awaiting an agreement among the Kurdish parties on a nominee from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). By long-standing political convention since the fall of the former regime, the presidency has been allocated to the Kurds, and more specifically to the PUK.

In this context, former MP Karwan Yarwais told PUKMEDIA that the Kurds should uphold this established political understanding, under which the three senior state positions have been shared among Kurds, Shia, and Sunnis. He described this arrangement as a cornerstone of Iraq’s consensus-based system. Yarwais stressed that safeguarding the constitutional rights of the Kurdish people requires internal unity, alongside coordination with Shia and Sunni forces. He added that the PUK and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) must reach an agreement, within the limited time remaining, on a single PUK candidate for the presidency and submit that unified nomination to parliament. According to Yarwais, such a step would help break the deadlock in forming the Kurdistan Regional Government, reactivate the Kurdistan Parliament, and bring an end to the political paralysis that has persisted since the Kurdistan parliamentary elections held more than a year ago.

Following the election of the Iraqi parliament’s leadership on 30 December 2025, Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi announced the opening of the nomination process for the presidency, which would run for three days, from 31 December 2025 to 3:00 pm on 4 January 2026, during official working hours from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. Political observers argue that maintaining the presidency within its established political framework—namely, within the PUK’s share—does not constitute partisan favouritism. Rather, they see it as a pragmatic choice to preserve national balance and avoid unnecessary internal disputes at a particularly sensitive stage, where relying on proven arrangements is preferable to risking renewed political crises.

Under Article (1) of Law No. 8 of 2012, which governs nominations for the office of President of the Republic, a presidential candidate must meet several criteria. The candidate must be an Iraqi citizen by birth to Iraqi parents, be of sound mind, and at least forty years old, possess a good reputation, political experience, and a record of integrity, justice, and loyalty to the nation. In addition, the candidate must hold a minimum of a recognised bachelor’s degree, must not have been convicted of offences involving moral turpitude, and must not be subject to accountability and justice measures or any equivalent procedures.


PUKMEDIA