diff --git a/kinit/kinit.cpp b/kinit/kinit.cpp
index 2a74368e1..191757d08 100644
--- a/kinit/kinit.cpp
+++ b/kinit/kinit.cpp
@@ -1615,6 +1615,7 @@ int tdeinit_x_errhandler( Display *dpy, XErrorEvent *err )
 // another X connection for startup notification purposes
 static void setupX()
 {
+    XInitThreads();
     XSetIOErrorHandler(tdeinit_xio_errhandler);
     XSetErrorHandler(tdeinit_x_errhandler);
 }