KRG Announces Breakthrough Salary Deal with Baghdad
The KRG and Baghdad reached a preliminary deal on revenues, securing delayed salary payments for the Region's employees. In the same meeting, the KRG condemned recent drone attacks on its oil fields and called on Baghdad to act.
By Kamaran Aziz
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has reached a preliminary agreement with the Iraqi Federal Government on oil and non-oil revenues, a breakthrough that will see Baghdad pay the delayed salaries of the Region's employees for the past several months, the KRG spokesperson announced on Wednesday.
KRG spokesperson Peshawa Hawramani told Kurdistan24 on Wednesday that the understanding was presented by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani to the Council of Ministers, which subsequently approved the deal after discussion.
"The understanding is about non-oil and oil revenues, and as a start, the Federal Government will pay the salaries for these past few months for the employees of the Kurdistan Region," Hawramani said.
He emphasized the nature of the development, adding, "After this understanding, both governments will enter into a broader agreement. What has been reached is a preliminary agreement."
The announcement comes after more than 75 days during which the Iraqi government had not sent the salaries for the Region's employees, citing various pretexts.
The approval took place during a KRG Council of Ministers meeting on Wednesday, supervised by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and attended by Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani.
During the same meeting, the Council of Ministers also addressed the recent wave of attacks on the region's energy sector. According to a KRG statement, the council "condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attacks on the Kurdistan Region, and specifically on the region's oil fields, which have caused significant material damage to the oil production process."
The statement declared that "the objective of these attacks is to strike the economic and energy infrastructure of the Kurdistan Region."
In response, the Council of Ministers called on the Federal Government "to fulfill its duty to put an end to these attacks and to take legal measures against the perpetrators." The condemnation follows several days of drone attacks targeting the oil fields of the Kurdistan Region.
