Attachments
Key Takeaways:
- UNAMI Presents New Update On Iraq; Sudani Attends Arab League Summit; KDP-PUK Disputes Over Regional Elections Intensify – On May 18, UNAMI’s Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert delivered a new briefing to the Security Council that reaffirmed that Sudani’s government has “shown its resolve to tackle…pressing issues” facing Iraq, and commended its “express stance” against corruption” But the UN envoy cautioned that “the harsh reality is that there is no time to lose,” stressed the need to place the national interest above all else, and urged lawmakers to quickly approve a budget “needed to turn certain Government goals into realities.” Meanwhile, Plasschaert criticized the PUK and KDP for failing to make compromises and allowing their disagreement to drive the Kurdistan region “close to the brink.” Regarding climate and water, Plasschaert cautioned that, if current trends continue, Iraq will only be able to meet 15% of its water demands by 2035. On May 19, PM Sudani attended the 32nd Arab League summit meeting in Jeddah. In his address, Sudani welcomed the return of Syria to the League meetings, urged joint Arab action on drug trafficking, climate change, and water shortage, and called for developing the League into an integrated economic bloc. On May 22, the Kurdistan parliament held a chaotic session during which members of rival parties hurled furniture and water bottles at each other as disputes over the election system boiled over. PUK members accused the KDP of violating the bylaws by introducing a motion to empower the region’s existing election commission, which the PUK insists on replacing, to manage the next election. Speaker Rewaz Faeq, a PUK member, attempted to adjourn the meeting to block the motion, but the vote proceeded, and 58 lawmakers out of 111 voted in favor of extending the commission’s mandate. In response, Faeq…
