According to Rudaw TV, Nechirvan Barzani said at the campaign held in Erbil to support the KDP candidates in Kirkuk that: " It is very difficult to be Kurdistani [form Kurdistan] and Kirkuki [form Kirkuk], and we are all Kirkuk with our senses, minds and intellect."

He pointed out that they "wanted to hold the event in Kirkuk, but due to the special circumstances of Kirkuk, they [Kirkuk officials] did not agree and the Kirkuk propaganda carnival was held in Erbil. He called all the Kurdish, Arab, Christian and Turkmen groups living in Kirkuk as genuine Kirkukis and that the inhabitants of this region had suffered a lot since the establishment of Iraq and that the governments were trying to change the demographic structure of this region and implement a policy of interpretation and Arabization."

Barzani added that the KDP wants Kirkuk oil to be a factor for the development and well-being of its people, not to make others greedy in the region and a reason to change Kirkuk's identity.

The KDP deputy leader went on to say that: "Our war in Kirkuk, like Khaneqin, Shingal and Makhmour, is over its historical identity. Without being the enemy of any ethnicity, we do not want Kirkuk oil and our demand is over the identity of Kirkuk."

"We are against what all the previous regimes in Iraq and the racists have done; We do not want to plunge Kirkuk into an ethnic war, but we want security, services, coexistence, development and real partnership in Kirkuk for all its residents, and we do not want to determine the fate of Kirkuk through confiscation and coup."

Barzani added that the KDP wants the fate of Kirkuk to be determined and finalized through the implementation of Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution, and that all factions in Kirkuk consider themselves victorious and successful.

He also noted that the KRG, when Kirkuk was run jointly with the Iraqi government, had taken care of the area with its own budget, including a share of electricity generated by the KRG to Kirkuk. And the salaries of teachers in Kurdish-language schools in Kirkuk are provided by the Kurdish region.

Reporter's code: 50101