PM Barzani: No Justification for Delaying Kurdistan Region Parliament's Reactivation

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Tuesday reaffirmed the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) commitment to reactivating the Kurdistan Region Parliament, stressing that there is no justification for further delaying its return and warning that any political party obstructing the process must be held accountable to the people of Kurdistan.

Speaking at a press conference following the inauguration of Ganatha D Babel Park in Erbil, Barzani addressed a range of issues, including the parliament's reactivation, relations between Erbil and Baghdad, media professionalism, Kurdish participation in international football, salary payments, customs, and the protection of the Kurdistan Region's oil fields.

"We are keen to see the parliament reactivated. There is no justification for preventing the reopening of the Kurdistan Region Parliament," Prime Minister Barzani said, adding that any political party or entity blocking its return should answer to the people of the Kurdistan Region.

On the treatment of journalists, the Prime Minister emphasized the importance of respecting media professionals while calling for responsible reporting.

"All media professionals deserve respect, and everyone should be treated with respect. At the same time, journalists must carry out their work professionally," he said.

Responding to a question about the FIFA World Cup, Barzani welcomed the participation of several Kurdish footballers representing different national teams.

"It is a source of pride that Kurdish youth have reached such a high level," he said. "Although it is unfortunate that they are not competing under the name of Kurdistan, we hope that one day the Kurdistan national team will participate in the World Cup."

Addressing concerns over the ASYCUDA customs system, Barzani said the government is working through the remaining technical issues and has reached a preliminary agreement aimed at resolving the matter in the near future.

On the issue of the 120 billion Iraqi dinars in internal revenues, Barzani said there is no legal basis for transferring the amount to the federal government, noting that the law only requires the Kurdistan Region to hand over half of its federal revenues to Baghdad.

"We want to increase the Region's revenues so that we can contribute more to Iraq," he said. "However, this will not affect the salaries of the Kurdistan Region's public employees."

Barzani acknowledged that Iraq is facing liquidity challenges due to the regional situation, but stressed that public employees in the Kurdistan Region must not face unequal treatment.

"There must be no discrimination between salary earners in the Kurdistan Region and those in the rest of Iraq," he said.

Concluding the press conference, the Prime Minister announced that the KRG has sent a delegation to discuss measures to protect the Region's oil fields, adding that the relevant parties have pledged to provide air defense systems for the facilities.