Kurdistan's Political Armies: The Challenge of Unifying Peshmerga Forces: The Challenge of Unifying Peshmerga Forces

The issue of unifying Kurdish military forces has been on the Kurdish region’s public agenda since it gained de facto autonomy from Saddam Hussein’s regime in 1991. But fourteen years later, the various peshmerga forces remain divided along partisan lines. Partisan factionalism has proved to be a major stumbling block to unifying and integrating the peshmerga. No less importantly, this “partisanization” has hindered the establishment of healthy, democratic civil-military relations in Iraqi Kurdistan. Asserting the government’s authority over the peshmerga, rather than that of party politburos, is crucial but unlikely to be fully achieved so long as the peshmerga continues to function as a vehicle for political patronage by the KDP and PUK.
The challenges of unifying and de-politicizing the peshmerga became urgent following the launch of IS’s major Iraqi offensive in June 2014. Worsening political and financial relations with Baghdad—on which the KRG depends for budget transfers—has made the unification issue more urgent. Until these issues are resolved, Iraqi Kurdistan cannot become a consolidated democracy, which will impede its hopes of eventually winning international recognition as an independent state.