The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) agreed on Wednesday to form a committee for talks on Kurdistan parliamentary elections set for October 1.

Officials from PUK and KDP politburos held a meeting at the Kurdistan Region Presidency in Erbil. Bafel Jalal Talabani and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, who is also KDP’s deputy leader, attended the meeting.

In a joint statement, both sides said they discussed relations between the two parties and the latest developments in Iraq and Kurdistan as well as cooperation and joint works.

They stressed that the current visit by the Region’s president to Slemani city had facilitated talks between the two sides.

“An appropriate ground has come forward to facilitate and develop relations and return trust between both sides following the visit by Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani to Sulaimani,” they said.

The PUK and KDP officials decided on the continuity of meetings between politburos of the two parties, the statement read. They also agreed to form a joint committee between their politburos for talks on the process of elections in the Kurdistan Region.

The two sides stressed their support for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and its legitimate institutions. They also agreed to suspend their media campaign against each other.