Erbil And Baghdad Open Talks On Four Key Issues As Budget Vote Looms
A high-level Kurdistan Region delegation meets federal ministers in Baghdad on the Region’s budget share, customs automation, and oil and non-oil revenues, with no agreement yet on the share
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - A high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is meeting a high-level Iraqi federal delegation in Baghdad at midday on Sunday to discuss four key issues, Kurdistan 24’s correspondent Shivan Jabari reported from the Iraqi capital. The meeting is taking place at the Supreme Economic Council, three days before the Iraqi cabinet is due to take up the draft 2027 federal budget.
The four issues are the Kurdistan Region’s share of the 2027 budget law, the implementation of the Asycuda customs system, the oil file, and the questions of non-oil revenue and border crossings.
The KRG delegation is headed by Dr. Omed Sabah, head of the KRG Council of Ministers’ Diwan, and includes acting Minister of Electricity and Minister of Natural Resources Kamal Mohammed, Dr. Abdulhakim Khusraw, head of the Department of Coordination and Follow-up, Dr. Shakhawan Abdullah, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party bloc in the Iraqi parliament, and Fars Issa, head of the KRG representation in Baghdad.
The federal delegation is headed by Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed Tamim, and includes Finance Minister Faleh al-Sari, Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudair and Ammar Subhi Mashhadani, head of the Federal Board of Supreme Audit.
According to Kurdistan 24’s information, no agreement has yet been reached on the Region’s share.
Baghdad has set the Region’s share at 12.67 percent and attached a condition that the Region export 450,000 barrels of oil a day, while the KRG asks for a 14 percent share and has told federal officials it cannot export that volume.
Under the law, the budget should be divided on the basis of Iraq’s population, and the KRG says the share should follow census figures, which it says give it 14.14 percent of the general budget. The draft sets aside about 13 trillion dinars for the Region in 2027, an amount that does not cover salaries and expenses, according to Kurdistan 24. Iraq’s 2027 revenues are estimated at 174 trillion dinars against spending of 217 trillion, leaving a 43 trillion dinar shortfall that the government plans to cover through domestic and foreign borrowing.
If the Council of Ministers approves the draft, it will send it to the Iraqi parliament for a vote to become law. The cabinet postponed a session planned for Saturday to approve the draft, and the meeting is now set for November 10, while the Finance Committee has said the draft will reach parliament by November 15.