Kurdish reconciliation between the two northern groups

The two Kurdish leaders Masoud al- Barazani and Jalal al-Talibani in a press conference held in Salah Eddine region, north Iraq, on Sunday announced that they have signed an agreement to settle their disputes especially through reviving the united parliament.

The leader of the Kurdistani Democratic Party, al-Barazani, and the chairman of the Kurdistani National Federation, al-Talibani, said they have signed a "historical agreement" in conclusion of a meeting which lasted for two days in Salah Eddine.

They added that the "agreement ends all their differences and settles all pending issues in a peace agreement," they signed on September 17, 1998 in Washington." Al-Barazani and al-Talibani in particular agreed on setting a date for resuming the work of a united parliament." A parliament which has been blocked since 6 years.

A spokesman for the Kurdistani Democratic Party in London, Dinshad Meiran, said that the parliament will be invited for a meeting on October 4 in Arbeil.

Al-Talibani and al-Barazani met on Saturday for the first time since almost two years. Meiran said that they also agreed to "form four joint committees at highest levels in order to end all their differences and pending issues between the two parties within one month." The Kurdistani National Federation said that al-Talibani returned back to Northern Iraq from the US on Saturday and met with al-Barazani near Arbiel. The Kurdistani National Federation explained "that view points were exchanged concerning the question of Iraq, the current political situation in Kurdistan, bilateral relations and coordination between the two parties in order to establish peace in Kurdistan." Meantime, in a statement, the Kurdistani Democratic Party said that al-Barazani and al-Talibani held a close door meeting followed by a plenary meeting that included members of the two groups leaderships in Salah Eddine city. Al-Talibani briefed al-Barazani on the results of his recent tour to the US, Europe and Turkey.

Al-Talibani visited the USA in August and met with leaders of the Iraqi opposition at the invitation of the US President George Bush. Al-Barazani did not take part in the meeting.

In recent weeks tension has escalated between al-Barazani and Turkey over Ankara's fears that the Kurds are seeking to separate in case Iraq's president Saddam Hussein is toppled.