Iraqi Federal Delegation Arrives In Erbil, To Meet Prime Minister In Zakho
The delegation led by Deputy PM Mandalawi arrives as prime Minister Barzani is in Zakho for the opening of three automotive industrial projects, with oil exports, financial disputes, and the 2027 budget on the agenda
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - A senior Iraqi federal government delegation arrived in Erbil on Sunday and met Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani in Zakho, according to an official statement from the KRG Media and Information Office, with the delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs Mohsin Mandalawi and including Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed and Electricity Minister Ali Saadi.
The Baghdad delegation’s accompanying team includes the head of the advisers board, the deputy minister of finance, the deputy minister of oil, and several other senior federal government officials. After being received by Prime Minister Barzani in Zakho, the Baghdad delegation met with the KRG’s own negotiating team.
The KRG Negotiating Team
The KRG negotiating delegation for this meeting comprises Mohammed Kamal, acting Minister of Natural Resources; Dr. Omid Sabah, head of the Council of Ministers Diwan; Dr. Abdul Hakim Khosrawi, head of the Coordination and Follow-Up Office; Ahmed Mufti, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources; and several senior Finance Ministry officials.
The Agenda
The primary objective of the visit and the meeting between the two delegations is to create greater coordination and reach a better understanding on the shared files between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi federal government. The core agenda covers the mechanism for the daily export and handover of Kurdistan Region oil to SOMO, the resolution of accumulated financial disputes between Erbil and Baghdad, and ensuring that the Kurdistan Region’s demands are incorporated into the 2027 federal budget draft text.
The meeting takes place one day after KRG Spokesman Peshawa Hawrami confirmed that a KRG delegation had been in Baghdad in intensive talks with Iraqi Finance Ministry officials on the same budget file, and that an Iraqi delegation would visit within one to two days. Sunday’s meeting fulfils that timeline precisely.