KRG Council of Ministers Reaffirms Commitment to Oil Export Agreement
The session began with the Council of Ministers reaffirming its support for the continued implementation of the KRG’s oil export agreement, which came into force on Sept. 27.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Council of Ministers to review the financial situation, federal agreements, and new legislation, according to a government statement.
The session began with the Council of Ministers reaffirming its support for the continued implementation of the KRG’s oil export agreement, which came into force on Sept. 27. In recent days, an average of 195,000 barrels of oil per day have been exported from the Kurdistan Region oil fields by the Ministry of Natural Resources and SOMO, with the revenue returned to the federal treasury.
The Council expressed hope that the Iraqi federal government would continue fulfilling its obligation to provide salaries and entitlements for August and beyond, as it does for other provinces. It also reaffirmed the Kurdistan Region’s readiness to share non-oil revenues with the Federal Ministry of Finance, with the Federal Treasury Department overseeing the process.
However, the KRG noted that despite allocations in the federal budget law, the Federal Ministry of Finance has yet to release funds for consumption and investment expenditures in the Kurdistan Region. The Cabinet stressed that monthly revenue and expenditure reports have been regularly submitted and audited by both federal and regional financial oversight bodies since early 2023.
The Council urged Baghdad to continue meetings under the supervision of the federal ministerial committee to resolve outstanding issues over non-oil revenues as soon as possible.
On the legislative front, the Cabinet discussed a proposal from the Ministry of Justice to annul a previous decision by the Kurdistan Region Economic Council, ruling it incompatible with recently enacted Law No. 1 on the sale and lease of state property.
In its final agenda item, the Council overwhelmingly approved the "Safety Guide," a comprehensive set of guidelines prepared by the KRG Ministry of Interior aimed at protecting the lives and property of citizens. The guide sets criteria to strengthen public safety and foster a more secure environment across the Kurdistan Region.
