Peregraf
A high-level committee formed by the Iraqi government on Wednesday held its first meeting today in Baghdad, aiming to address the ongoing disputes over oil exports, non-oil revenues of Kurdistan and public sector salaries between the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
Chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Planning Dr. Mohammed Ali Tamim, the committee emphasized in its first session "the importance of continuing technical and administrative discussions on these issues with the aim of reaching swift, fair, and realistic solutions and remedies that guarantee the rights of Kurdistan Region employees."
The committee includes five ministers, among them two Kurds: Minister of Reconstruction Bangin Rekani and Minister of Justice Khalid Shwani.
According to a statement from the Planning Ministry, the meeting reviewed documents submitted by both sides that outlined key issues, including the regulation of oil exports, domestic petroleum consumption in the Kurdistan Region, the transfer of non-oil revenues from the KRG to Iraqi federal treasury, and the implementation Iraq’s federal salary domiciliation initiative on salaries for public employees in the Kurdistanregion known as the Tawteen program.
Kurdistan Region civil servants have not received their May and June salaries. Baghdad has tied the disbursement of funds to the KRG’s compliance with the federal budget law, which mandates the handover of oil revenues and increased non-oil income.
The committee stated that the goal is to ensure that employees in the Kurdistan Region are treated on par with their counterparts across Iraq, in line with a unified state financial policy.
The committee is expected to hold further meetings to move discussions forward and develop mechanisms for implementation.