ERBIL () - The United States State Department expressed its support for a strong and resilient Kurdistan Region in response to a inquiry about the Peshmerga unification ceremony, describing the Kurdistan Region as a foundational pillar of the broader US-Iraq relationship and encouraging all parties to work swiftly and constructively on matters that strengthen the Region's institutions.
The response was provided to White House Correspondent Sangar Akrayi on background, attributable to a State Department spokesperson, in response to a query about the significance of the Peshmerga unification process and Washington's position on it.
"The United States supports a strong and resilient Iraqi Kurdistan Region, which remains a foundational pillar of the broader US-Iraq relationship,"
the spokesperson said.
"We encourage all parties to work swiftly and constructively on matters that strengthen the region's institutions."
On the specific question of the Peshmerga unification as an internal KRG matter, the spokesperson referred to the Kurdistan Regional Government to speak about their internal affairs, a formulation that reflects Washington's standard practice of deferring to the KRG on institutional matters while affirming its broader support for the Region's strength and stability.
The State Department's characterization of the Kurdistan Region as a foundational pillar of the US-Iraq relationship carries particular weight in the current context. The unification of the Peshmerga into a single professional force under the Ministry of Peshmerga has been one of the most consistent demands of American and European partners throughout the post-ISIS period, with US and German training missions having specifically designed their programmes to build cross-command interoperability and institutional coherence. Washington's encouragement of swift and constructive action on institution-strengthening measures reflects the same policy priority that has underpinned years of coalition investment in Peshmerga reform.
Al-Zaidi at the UN General Assembly
The State Department's response to coincides with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi's participation in the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he is attending the high-level week of the 81st session alongside world leaders. Al-Zaidi's presence at the UN General Assembly provides Baghdad with a major international platform at a moment when Iraq's role as a mediating state between Washington and Tehran, its September 30 militia disarmament deadline, and its management of the Saudi pipeline drone attack fallout are all drawing intense international scrutiny. The UN margins are expected to include bilateral meetings with senior American and regional officials that will bear directly on the files al-Zaidi is managing simultaneously at home.
Peshmerga Unification Update
On the ground in the Kurdistan Region, the Peshmerga unification ceremony marked a significant institutional milestone in a reform process that has been years in the making. More than 99 percent of Peshmerga force members are now registered in the My Account digital salary system, receiving their payments directly through ATM machines under a framework that has replaced the traditional bank distribution method. Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani signed a decree on September 9, 2026, promoting 519 senior officers of the Interior Ministry's Internal Security Forces, in one of the largest single security sector advancement actions in the Region's recent history. Together, the unification ceremony, the digital salary transition, and the officer promotion decree reflect a KRG security establishment that is simultaneously consolidating its command structure, modernizing its financial infrastructure, and advancing its personnel at a moment when the regional security environment demands institutional strength and readiness.
