Coalition funding for Peshmerga ends as four-year agreement expires

ERBIL — The international coalition’s financial assistance to the Peshmerga has ended with the expiry of a four-year agreement, and the ministry has asked Baghdad to cover the gap by paying Peshmerga salaries on the same basis as federal security forces, a senior official said.

The final payment, covering August and September, was distributed on Thursday, said Lt. Gen. Bakhtiar Mohammed Sadiq, secretary-general of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs. The agreement ran from Sept. 21, 2022, to Sept. 21, 2026, with the assistance reduced by 25% each year until it reached zero.

It was part of a memorandum that tied international support to reforming and unifying the Peshmerga under the ministry. The Kurdistan Region formally declared that unification complete on Monday, replacing the party-aligned 70 and 80 commands with two area commands and 11 divisions, and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani and Prime Minister Masrour Barzani both called at the ceremony for Baghdad to meet its obligations on Peshmerga pay. Coalition countries have supported the reform with advisers, training, equipment and logistics, and Peshmerga officials are seeking bilateral military cooperation with them after the mission ends on Sept. 30.