KRG PM refutes Iraqi government’s remarks over oil export

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Thursday refuted remarks made by his Iraqi counterpart’s office about the handover of Kurdistan’s oil exports exclusively through the state-run SOMO company.

Speaking to the press in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum (WEF), KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said he had a “productive meeting” with Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi, and that both sides would hold another meeting next week.

The Iraqi Prime Minister’s Office, however, issued a statement following the meeting claiming the KRG had agreed to hand over oil exports to Iraqi authorities. During his speech on Thursday, Abadi reiterated that same point.

Responding to the Iraqi government’s claims, Prime Minister Barzani said that “the statement they [Iraqi PM's office] issued is far from the truth, we did not even discuss the matter [oil dossier] at all, and they should not have issued such a statement.”

“The Kurdistan Region’s position is clear; we want to resolve all issues within the framework of the Iraqi Constitution,” the KRG Prime Minister affirmed.

“We had several meetings with world leaders, including a short meeting with Abadi, on the sidelines of the WEF in Davos,” Prime Minister Barzani told reporters.

The Prime Minister added that reopening Kurdistan’s airports, the salary payment of KRG employees, dams, and updates on the committees formed to resolve the pending issues was discussed during the meeting with Abadi.

“We have agreed to hold another meeting next week to discuss the oil dossier to resolve the issues,” Barzani stated, noting that “we cannot expect all problems to be resolved at once.”

He mentioned that the disputes between Erbil and Baghdad were “big,” but it was possible to resolve all matters related to salaries and airports before Iraqi elections are held in May.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany