Qubad J. Talabani

Qubad Talabani, as Representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to the United States, works closely with the U.S. Government, the media and research institutions providing critical analysis and up-to-date information on Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.

After Operation Iraqi Freedom (Spring 2003), he served a year as Senior Foreign Relations officer for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) (one of the leading Kurdish political parties in Iraq), operating mainly out of Baghdad and Sulaimania. There, he worked closely with the U.S-led Coalition Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA), and was PUK’s top liaison to the Coalition after it became the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and to US forces in Iraq. Mr. Talabani was also a key negotiator in drafting the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), Iraq’s first post-Saddam constitution.

During the period 2001 - 2003, Mr. Talabani served first as a Special Assistant to the then PUK Representative in Washington and then later he served as the Deputy PUK Representative in Washington D.C.

Mr. Talabani is frequently interviewed by the popular press and other publications. He has appeared numerous times to discuss Kurdish and Iraqi issues on major television networks including: CNN, BBC, FOX News, and other American and international networks.

Mr. Talabani’s family has been involved in Kurdish politics for decades. His father, Jalal Talabani, is the President of the Republic of Iraq and Secretary General of the PUK.
Mr. Talabani studied in London and holds a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering. He lives with his wife Sherri Kraham in Washington, D.C.