Iraqi Central Bank Denies Reports of US Dollar Shipment Suspension Amid Rising Tensions

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) issued a statement on Monday rejecting reports that the United States has halted shipments of physical U.S. dollars to Baghdad, pushing back against claims of a financial freeze circulating in regional media.

The denial followed reports by the broadcaster Al-Hadath on Monday, which claimed that Washington had suspended all currency transfers and formal security coordination with Iraq following a series of aggressive diplomatic and legal moves by the U.S. State Department.

The conflicting reports emerge during a period of high-stakes political horse-trading in Baghdad.

While the CBI maintains that the flow of currency from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York remains uninterrupted, the rumors of a "dollar crunch" have already rippled through Iraqi markets.

These developments follow a Friday announcement from the U.S. State Department sanctioning seven senior commanders of Iran-aligned militias, a move that analysts suggest is part of a broader American effort to pressure Iraqi political leaders into excluding paramilitary figures from the next government and implementing a comprehensive disarmament plan.

The friction between media reports of a financial halt and the Iraqi government’s official denial underscores the precarious nature of Iraq’s economic sovereignty.

Even if shipments continue, the mere suggestion of their suspension serves as a potent tool of political signaling. In a country where the daily dollar auction at the Central Bank dictates the price of bread and fuel, the threat of currency withholding represents the ultimate "nuclear option" for Washington.

By linking the availability of cash to the exclusion of sanctioned militia leaders from the executive branch, the U.S. is testing the structural limits of the Iraqi state’s dependence on the American financial system.

According to the reports from Al-Hadath on Monday, the alleged suspension of dollar shipments and security ties was intended as a direct response to the continued presence and influence of "terrorist militias" within the Iraqi state apparatus.

The broadcaster cited sources stating that Washington’s cooperation is now contingent upon the formation of a government that provides a transparent account of those involved in recent attacks against U.S. facilities.

However, the Central Bank’s rebuttal was explicit: it characterized these reports as inaccurate and insisted that the institutional mechanisms for currency transfer remain operational and aligned with international standards.

The underlying tension was codified on April 17, when Thomas "Tommy" Pigott, the Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, announced sanctions against seven commanders of what he termed "reprehensible Iran-backed terror groups."

These groups include Kata’ib Hizballah, Kata’ib Sayyid Al-Shuhada, Harakat Al-Nujaba, and Asa’ib Ahl al-Haqq (AAH). Pigott stated that these commanders "exploit [Iraq’s] resources to fund terrorism" and called on Iraqi authorities to "take immediate steps to dismantle these groups."

This institutional pressure is not happening in a vacuum.

According to The Financial Times, U.S. officials have been warning Iraqi leaders for weeks that the inclusion of militia-aligned figures in the government—specifically citing the election of AAH political leader Adnan Fayhan as first deputy speaker of parliament—is "incompatible" with the U.S.-Iraq partnership.

Washington’s grievances center on the "Coordination Framework," the dominant Shiite political alliance currently tasked with forming the next government. 

The alliance includes several factions that the U.S. maintains have direct ties to the Iranian regime.

The institutional context of this dispute is rooted in a post-2003 arrangement where Iraq’s oil revenues are deposited at the New York Fed.

To facilitate domestic liquidity, the U.S. Treasury facilitates the delivery of physical dollar pallets to Baghdad. If this supply were truly halted, as Al-Hadath reported, the Central Bank would be unable to sustain the currency auctions that prevent the Iraqi Dinar from entering a hyper-inflationary spiral.

A similar temporary halt in 2015, triggered by concerns over cash flowing to ISIS and sanctioned entities in Iran, led to immediate market instability.

While the CBI denies a current halt, the threat remains a central component of the diplomatic landscape.

The security dimension is equally strained.

On Monday, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad issued a Level 4 Security Alert, maintaining its "Do Not Travel" advisory.

The embassy warned that militias continue to plan attacks against U.S. targets across the country. Despite the reopening of Iraqi airspace for commercial travel, the mission warned of the ongoing risk of drones and projectiles.

"Iran-aligned Iraqi terrorist militias continue to plan additional attacks against U.S. citizens and U.S.-linked targets throughout Iraq, including the Iraqi Kurdistan Region. Some entities associated with the Iraqi government continue to actively provide political, financial, and operational cover for these terrorist militias," the statement read.

The reported suspension of security coordination—if confirmed despite the government’s pushback—would leave Iraqi forces without critical intelligence-sharing channels at a moment of heightened regional volatility.

"Iraqi airspace has been reopened, and limited commercial flights have resumed. U.S. citizens considering air travel through Iraq should be aware of the ongoing risks of missiles, drones, and projectiles in Iraqi airspace," the statement added.

The U.S. Mission in Iraq stressed on "its operations despite the Ordered Departure status, in order to assist U.S. citizens in Iraq. Do not attempt to travel to the Embassy in Baghdad or the Consulate General in Erbil due to significant security risks."

Stakeholders in Baghdad are currently navigating these contradictory signals with extreme caution.

The Coordination Framework has reportedly discussed the possibility of replacing Adnan Fayhan in his parliamentary post to appease Washington.

However, the demand for immediate disarmament remains a significant impasse. The militias argue that they are a legitimate part of the state security apparatus under the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a legal entity created by the Iraqi parliament.

The structural implication of this standoff is a deepening crisis of governance. Washington appears to be using its control over the dollar supply to force a decoupling of the Iraqi state from the paramilitary groups that helped it survive the war against ISIS.

This policy treats the Iraqi financial system not merely as a partner, but as a lever for regional containment. For the Iraqi government, the challenge is to maintain the CBI's credibility and the flow of dollars while managing a domestic political coalition that relies on the very groups Washington is seeking to dismantle.

As of Monday evening, the market value of the Dinar showed signs of volatility despite the Central Bank's denial, reflecting the public's anxiety over the conflicting reports.

The next steps for the Iraqi political class involve a delicate balancing act: providing enough concessions on government appointments and militia disarmament to satisfy the U.S. Treasury, while avoiding a domestic security crisis with the PMF. For now, the pallets of cash may still be arriving, but the conditions attached to them have never been more stringent.