Iraqi PM calls for resolving disputes with Kurds to defeat ISIL

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Sunday that the outstanding problems between Baghdad and Kurdistan Regional Government Kurdistan RegionG) must be resolved because both sides are confronting the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL) militant group.

Abadi’s remarks came in a statement following his meeting with a Kurdish delegation headed by Nechirvan Barzani, the Prime Minister of the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan, who arrived in Baghdad earlier in the day to discuss the pending issues between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the central government, including the budget dispute on oil exports.

“The interest of Iraq is greater than all of us, and that the threat of terrorism is a threat to all Iraq, which invites us to solve all the problems,” the statement quoted Abadi as saying.

“We don’t think that there is a problem which cannot be resolved in accordance with the constitution, justice and fairness,” Abadi said.

For his part, Barzani hailed Abadi’s attitude in dealing with the divisions among Iraqi factions, saying “the steps that you adopted in resolving disputes are encouraging to all Iraqis, and we are looking forward to open a new page for the benefit of all Iraq, not just the region of Kurdistan.”

“We have the same approach to solve the problems, and we support adopting a clear strategy for finding solutions (to the disputes) through ongoing meetings,” Barzani said./End/