The president is to be chosen by the new national parliament whose members were elected on December 15.

The president's re-selection was decided by leaders of Talabani's own Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and by those of the rival Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Massud Barzani.

PUK and KDP leaders also announced they intended to merge their respective administrations within the autonomous region of Kurdistan, bringing all three of their provinces under single rule.

Until now Barzani's KDP was solely responsible for running Arbil and Dohuk, while Talabani's PUK ran Sulaimaniyah province.

Since 1998, rivalries between the two formerly warring Kurdish factions have prevented repeated attempts to set up a joint administration.

The 111-strong regional parliament will be asked to approve the measure.