Iraq's Kurdish regional parliament elects interim speaker amid boycott
ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi Kurdish lawmakers on Monday elected an interim speaker of parliament, an assembly key to regional stability, although the Kurds' second largest party boycotted the vote due to a rift between the main political forces in Iraq's Kurdistan region. Vala Fareed, nominated by the region's dominant Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), was confirmed in the post by 68 votes. She is the first female speaker in Iraq's Kurdistan region.
ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi Kurdish lawmakers on Monday elected an interim speaker of parliament, an assembly key to regional stability, although the Kurds' second largest party boycotted the vote due to a rift between the main political forces in Iraq's Kurdistan region.
Vala Fareed, nominated by the region's dominant Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), was confirmed in the post by 68 votes. She is the first female speaker in Iraq's Kurdistan region.
However, proceedings were boycotted by the region's second-biggest party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), amid a breakdown in talks.
"Without a signed political agreement between us, we will neither participate in the parliamentary session nor the government formation process," PUK spokesman Latif Sheikh Omar said on Monday.
The 111-seat parliament legislates the semi-autonomous region, and its functioning is important to regional stability after several years of political upheaval which culminated in an independence referendum in September 2017.
The Kurdistan region was destabilized by the referendum, which damaged relations with the federal capital Baghdad and weakened the KRG's budget share. Relations have since improved, despite continued disagreements over oil exports.
The KDP and the PUK have traditionally brokered a power-sharing agreement for the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Monday's boycott was evidence of a continued rift between the parties, who are at odds over several key positions. Chief among these is the governorship of the disputed Kirkuk province and the Federal Justice Ministry in Baghdad.
The KDP acknowledged that once a binding political agreement is brokered between the two major parties, then the speakership would revert to the PUK and a new vote would be held.
"Whenever there is an agreement between the two parties, we will withdraw our candidate and vote for the PUK candidate, per our agreement," said Umed Khoshnaw, the head of the KDP bloc in parliament.
Kurdish regional elections were held on Sept. 30.
(Reporting by Raya Jalabi, Editing by William Maclean)
This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
also read
France, Germany to agree to NATO role against Islamic State - sources | Reuters
By Robin Emmott and John Irish | BRUSSELS/PARIS BRUSSELS/PARIS France and Germany will agree to a U.S. plan for NATO to take a bigger role in the fight against Islamic militants at a meeting with President Donald Trump on Thursday, but insist the move is purely symbolic, four senior European diplomats said.The decision to allow the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to join the coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq follows weeks of pressure on the two allies, who are wary of NATO confronting Russia in Syria and of alienating Arab countries who see NATO as pushing a pro-Western agenda."NATO as an institution will join the coalition," said one senior diplomat involved in the discussions. "The question is whether this just a symbolic gesture to the United States
China's Xi says navy should become world class | Reuters
BEIJING Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for greater efforts to make the country's navy a world class one, strong in operations on, below and above the surface, as it steps up its ability to project power far from its shores.China's navy has taken an increasingly prominent role in recent months, with a rising star admiral taking command, its first aircraft carrier sailing around self-ruled Taiwan and a new aircraft carrier launched last month.With President Donald Trump promising a US shipbuilding spree and unnerving Beijing with his unpredictable approach on hot button issues including Taiwan and the South and East China Seas, China is pushing to narrow the gap with the U.S. Navy.Inspecting navy headquarters, Xi said the navy should "aim for the top ranks in the world", the Defence Ministry said in a statement about his visit."Building a strong and modern navy is an important mark of a top ranking global military," the ministry paraphrased Xi as saying.