Barzani discussed with the US Consul several files, including the formation of the Kurdistan government

Twilight News – The Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, Najran Barzani, received on Monday, the US Consul in the Kurdistan Region Steve Vakn and a delegation accompanying him.

During the meeting discussed the relations between the Kurdistan Region and the United States in the past and present and ways to strengthen them, in addition to the economic conditions of the Kurdistan Region and the situation of displaced persons and refugees in the province of Kurdistan.

Vakn expressed thanks for the assistance provided by the Kurdistan Regional Government for displaced persons and refugees. In this regard, he stressed the cooperation between Erbil, Baghdad and the international community.

During the meeting, he spoke about the political situation in the Kurdistan Region, where Najir Barzani highlighted the efforts to form a new government cab and the continuation of the reform process, and the latest developments in the relationship between Erbil and Baghdad.

Vakn highly valued the policy of the Kurdistan Regional Government to pay attention to the culture of coexistence and tolerance, thanking the institutions of the Kurdistan Regional Government for the assistance provided to the consulate of his country in Erbil.

The discussion on the Middle East and the latest developments in the region was discussed on the other side of the meeting.

Keywords: Shafaaq.com

Abdul Mahdi directed a major campaign to lift all the concrete barriers from Baghdad

(Baghdad: Al-Furat News) Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, the lifting of all the concrete barriers of the capital Baghdad.

“According to the Prime Minister’s instructions to remove all the concrete barriers from the capital, a major campaign has been launched to raise them from the most important areas,” the statement said.

In another context, the Secretariat announced that “all completed residential shops complete infrastructure services within its plan for 2019.”

Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi earlier ordered the removal of concrete barriers from the Green Zone and opening roads to citizens to ease traffic congestion.

Alforatnews.com

Jump (in) oil prices

The price of oil jumped more than 1.5 percent on Monday, driven by optimism that talks in Beijing could end the US-China trade war, while crude also received support from supply cuts to a number of top producers.

Brent crude futures were $ 57.93 a barrel, up 87 cents, or 1.5 percent, from the previous close.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were $ 48.76 a barrel, up 80 cents, or 1.7 percent.

Financial markets saw a rally on Monday on expectations that direct trade negotiations between delegates from Washington and Beijing, starting on Monday, would ease tensions between the world’s two largest economies.

The United States and China have entered into a growing trade dispute since the beginning of 2018. Both have increased import duties on other goods. The dispute is negatively affecting economic growth.

Goldman Sachs said in a note today it had lowered its forecast for the average price of Brent crude for 2019 from $ 70 a barrel to $ 62.50 a barrel because of “the strongest adverse macroeconomic factors since 2015.”

JPMorgan said in a note last week that “the pace of global growth of three percent we expect for the next two quarters is increasingly challenging, apparently.”

Alforatnews.com

Mr. Ammar al-Hakim, Abadi and Allawi call the blocs to end the state of political obstruction

The head of the coalition of reform and reconstruction, Mr. Ammar al-Hakim, the head of the coalition of victory Haider al-Abadi, and the President of the National Coalition Iyad Allawi, the latest political situation, especially the file completion of the government cab and the need to resolve as soon as possible.

The leaders also discussed “supporting the government in implementing its development and service program, and the importance of assigning competent ministers who have integrity, competence and ability to manage and stressed the importance of this,” a statement from the coalition’s head office said.

And called “the call for all political blocs to assume their responsibilities to end the state of political obstruction.”

They also stressed “the importance of the opening of the alliance of reform and reconstruction, on the national political arena, especially the construction alliance, as well as the importance of unifying the views on issues that are in the best national interest.”

Alforatnews.com

Iran’s central bank plans to delete 4 zeroes from the currency

(International: Al Furat News) A deputy in the Islamic Shura Council in Iran, (parliament) revealed the intention of the central bank in the country to delete four thousand of the Iranian currency.

“The governor of the Central Bank of Iran Abdul-Assad Hamati, announced that the liquidity of 1700 thousand billion Tuman lost 30 percent of its capacity due to inflation.”
He added that the governor of the bank confirmed that the bank plans to delete four zeros from the national currency and that he should take the initiative quickly and the banking system should be reformed. ”

Papai said to the meeting of the bloc held on Sunday in the presence of Central Bank Governor Abdul Nasser Hamti to discuss the status of the country’s reserves Of hard currency and inflation in society. ”

He said that the governor of the bank pointed out at the meeting that the central bank is facing two important challenges are hard currency and the national currency and at a time when the people suffer from the volume of inflation, we find that the value of hard currency went to stability, ” He added that Hamati also pointed out that the US president is forced to retreat daily After claiming the collapse of the Iranian economy, he says today that the Iranian national currency is now besieged. ”

“The central bank governor has announced that the government is never planning to revalue hard currency and we should achieve the best results at the lowest cost,” Babai said.

The governor said that “the reason for non-decline in the value of hard currency is due to everyone’s perception that the value of hard currency will increase again, noting that the road is open with China and South Korea is on its way to deal with India while talking with Turkey in this area.”

Haji Babaei said Hamati said it was not possible to hold much hopes on the European channel but that its demand should be met. ”

Alforatnews.com

Iraq is the sixth largest economic country in the Middle East

Iraq is the sixth largest economic country in the Middle EastSaudi Arabia topped the Middle East as the largest economy in 2018 in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) at current “nominal” prices of $ 784 billion.

According to the analysis of the report unit in the newspaper “Economic” based on the data of the site spectator index and local statistical bodies of countries, Turkey came second with a nominal gross domestic product of $ 713 billion.

In third place came the UAE with a nominal GDP of $ 432 billion, Iran with $ 430 billion and Egypt with $ 249 billion.

Nominal GDP is the market value of the total final goods and services produced in a given country at current market prices.

Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow at current prices by 6.4 percent in 2019 to 3.13 trillion riyals.

By returning to the Middle East nominal GDP ranking in 2018, Iraq ranked sixth with a domestic output of $ 230 billion, followed by Qatar with $ 188 billion, Kuwait with $ 144 billion and Oman with $ 81 billion.

Lebanon ranked $ 10 billion, followed by Libya with $ 43 billion, Jordan with $ 41 billion, Bahrain with $ 39 billion and Yemen with $ 28 billion.

The Middle East is a geopolitical term for a geographical region located in the western part of Asia and part of North Africa. These countries are characterized by the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf. This term has been used since the 1950s 19th century AD.

Aynaliraqnews.com

Do you really think they are going to stay at 1190?

Iran pushes Iraq to maintain trade without US dollar

Iran is exerting considerable pressure on the Iraqi government to compel it not to abide by the US sanctions that have been imposed on Tehran in order for it to change its policies in the Middle East and abandon its nuclear program. These pressures include using the Iraqi dinar and Iranian rial in the trade exchange between the two countries.

Iraq serves as Iran’s economic lifeline, and Iran has great influence in the political and economic decision-making process. In addition, it uses the Iraqi territory to achieve its interests in the Arab region by supporting fighters loyal to Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria. This comes despite reservations expressed by some Shiites who recently set the Iranian Consulate ablaze in the city of Basra. During demonstrations against the rampant financial and administrative corruption, protesters chanted slogans calling on Iran to stop its interference in Iraqi affairs.

The Central Bank of Iran is struggling to reach an agreement with Iraq on the use of the dinar or the Iranian rial for trade with Iraq, but Iraq needs the approval of the United States, which is still determined to allow Iraq to only import natural gas from Iran for electricity supply for only a short time.

A source in the Central Bank of Iraq told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, “An Iraqi delegation that visited the United States in December and that included executives from the Central Bank of Iraq and several ministries such as the Ministries of Oil and Electricity discussed the exclusion of Iraq from the US sanctions on Iran.”

The source added, “The delegation failed to achieve good results, and it only allowed Iraq to buy Iranian gas for its power plants in return for the dinar. The government pledged to do so and opened an account for the Iranian company at a government bank in the dinar currency.”

According to the same source, “The United States has categorically refused to entirely exclude Iraq from the sanctions and it only allowed natural gas exports from Iran. This exception may include electricity in the coming period because the United States considers Iraq as an economic lifeline for Iran.”

“The United States is working to enable Iraq to exploit gas for the production of electricity, all the while putting an end to dependence on Iranian products and goods,” the source added.

While the US dollar is still used for trade between Iraq and Iran, all transfers are made outside the Iraqi banking sector through foreign brokers or banks in Syria and Lebanon. The dollar is also being smuggled through primitive ways in southern governorates. The vast majority of trade between the two countries is comprised of Iranian exports to Iraq, so Tehran would likely prefer euro or rial-based transactions.

Fadel al-Hamdani, head of the Iraqi-Iranian Chamber of Commerce, told Al-Monitor, “Trade between Iraq and Iran is still ongoing and has not been affected by the US sanctions imposed on Tehran given the ongoing negotiations between Iraq and the United States.”

He added, “Financial transactions are ongoing as per the normal procedures, and it is traders who are behind the changes that may have affected such transactions. If the Iraqi government makes any decisions related to trade with Iran, then the Iraqi private sector will abide by such official decisions.”

Al-Monitor has repeatedly tried to get the Central Bank of Iraq to comment on the use of the dinar and the rial in trade between Iraq and Iran, but to no avail.

However, a high-ranking Iraqi source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, “The Central Bank is committed not to sell the dollar to Iran and rejects any Iranian attempt to do so.”

The source noted, “The Central Bank also refused any cooperation with Iran aimed at converting the Iranian rial to the US dollar,” stressing that the Central Bank of Iraq even refused to sell the dollar to Iraqis wishing to visit Iran in order to dodge any sanctions that could hit the banking sector and financial sanctions.

Following the latest amendment to the draft budget of 2019, which is being discussed by the Iraqi parliament, the Iraqi government reduced allocations for the import of electricity from 424.6 billion dinars (roughly $357 million) to 70 billion dinars (roughly $59 million).

This means that Iraq will no longer buy electricity from Tehran, and this may spark popular protests similar to the ones that erupted in several provinces after Iran cut off its electricity supplies to Iraq last summer.

“Using the dinar in trade with Iran will lead to an increase in the value of the Iraqi dinar due to higher demand, especially considering that the trade exchange between the two countries reached $8 billion in the past eight months,” freelance researcher and writer Ahmed Hathal told Al-Monitor.

He said, “Iraq’s foreign reserves will increase and the Central Bank will be in a better position to defend the dinar in the event of a high demand of the dollar in the future, especially considering that cash reserves cover the country’s needs for more than nine months, thus exceeding the standards set by international financial institutions.”

Hathal added, “Iraq’s foreign trade with Iran requires another currency, namely the dollar. Hence the US rejection it will face.”

Annual Iranian exports to Iraq account for more than 22% of the total Iraqi imports, which exceed $35 billion from several countries. The private sector pays for these Iranian goods either through dollar transfers made by exchange companies or through means not accredited by the Central Bank, or by simply transferring cash by car. It is also very difficult for Iraq to ban the dollar due to the Iranian hegemony over the authorities.

Al-monitor.com

BGG ~ If The United States is so bad, why is Iran DESPERATE to get their hands on our money (USD)?? Suck it up!!

P.S – Why were the JACK @$$e$ in the previous administration in such a big hurry to give these terrorist thugs the kind of cash as they did? I don’t get it.

Further, If I read this correctly – that was the VERY DEFINITION of TREASON.

Top 5 countries opting to ditch US dollar & the reasons behind their move

The past year was full of events that inevitably split the global geopolitical space into two camps: those who still support using US currency as a universal financial tool, and those who are turning their back on the greenback.
Global tensions caused by economic sanctions and trade conflicts triggered by Washington have forced targeted countries to take a fresh look at alternative payment systems currently dominated by the US dollar.

RT has taken a deeper look into the recent phenomena of de-dollarization, summing up which countries have taken steps towards eliminating their reliance on the greenback, and the reasons behind their decision.

China

The ongoing trade conflict between the United States and China, as well as sanctions against Beijing’s biggest trading partners have forced China to take steps towards relieving the dollar dependence of the world’s second-largest economy.

In Beijing’s signature soft-power style, the government hasn’t made any loud announcements on the issue. However, the People’s Bank of China has been regularly reducing the country’s share of US Treasuries. Still the number-one foreign holder of the US sovereign debt, China has cut its share to the lowest level since May 2017.

Moreover, instead of promptly dumping the greenback, China is trying to internationalize its own currency, the yuan, which was included in the IMF basket alongside the US dollar, the Japanese yen, the euro, and the British pound. Beijing has recently made several steps towards strengthening the yuan, including accumulating gold reserves, launching yuan-priced crude futures, and using the currency in trade with international partners.

As part of its ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, China is planning to introduce swap facilities in participating countries to promote the use of the yuan. Moreover, the country is actively pushing for a free-trade agreement called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which will include the countries of Southeast Asia. The trade pact could easily replace the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the proposed multi-national trade deal which was torn up by US President Donald Trump shortly after he took office. RCEP includes 16 country signatories and the potential pact is expected to form a union of nearly 3.4 billion people based on a combined $49.5 trillion economy, which accounts for nearly 40 percent of the world’s GDP.

India

Ranked the world’s sixth-largest economy, India is one of the biggest merchandise importers. It’s not surprising that the country is directly affected by most global geopolitical conflicts and is significantly impacted by sanctions applied to its trading partners.

Earlier this year, Delhi switched to ruble payments on supplies of Russian S-400 air-defense systems as a result of US economic penalties introduced against Moscow. The country also had to switch to the rupee in purchases of Iranian crude after Washington re-instituted sanctions against Tehran. In December, India and the United Arab Emirates sealed a currency-swap agreement to boost trade and investment without the involvement of a third currency.

Taking into account that India is the third-largest country by purchasing power parity, steps of this kind could considerably diminish the role of the greenback in global trading.

Turkey

Earlier this year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced plans to end the US dollar monopoly via a new policy that is aimed at non-dollar trading with the country’s international partners. Later, Turkey’s leader announced that Ankara is preparing to conduct trade through national currencies with China, Russia and Ukraine. Turkey also discussed a possible replacement of the US dollar with national currencies in trade transactions with Iran.

The move was prompted by political and economic reasons. Relations between Ankara and Washington have been deteriorating since the failed military coup in the country to oust President Erdogan in 2016. It’s been reported that Erdogan suspects US involvement in the uprising and accuses Washington of harboring exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara blames for masterminding the coup.

The Turkish economy sank after Washington introduced economic sanctions over the arrest of US evangelical pastor Andrew Brunson on terrorism charges in relation to the uprising.

Erdogan has repeatedly slammed Washington for unleashing a global trade war, sanctioning Turkey and trying to isolate Iran. The NATO member’s decision to buy Russian S-400 missile systems added fuel to the fire.

Moreover, Turkey is trying to ditch the dollar in an attempt to support its national currency. The lira has lost nearly half of its value against the greenback over the past year. The currency plunge was exacerbated by soaring inflation and increasing prices for goods and services.

Iran

A triumphant return of Iran to the global trading arena did not last long. Shortly after winning the US presidential election, Donald Trump opted to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal signed between Tehran and a group of nations, including the UK, US, France, Germany, Russia, China, and the EU.

The oil-rich nation has once again become a target for severe sanctions resumed by Washington, which has also threatened to introduce penalties against any countries that would violate the embargo. The punitive measures banned business deals with the Islamic Republic and cracked down on the country’s oil industry.

Sanctions have forced Tehran to look for alternatives to the US dollar as payment for its oil exports. Iran clinched a deal for oil settlements with India using the Indian rupee. It also negotiated a barter deal with neighboring Iraq. The partners are also planning to use the Iraqi dinar for mutual transactions to reduce reliance on the US dollar amid banking problems connected to US sanctions.

Russia

President Vladimir Putin said the US is “making a colossal strategic mistake” by “undermining confidence in the dollar.” Putin has never called for restricting dollar transactions or banning the use of US currency. However, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said earlier this year that the country had to dump its holdings of US Treasuries in favor of more secure assets, such as the ruble, the euro, and precious metals.

The country has already taken several steps towards de-dollarizing the economy due to the constantly growing burden of sanctions that have been introduced since 2014 over a number of issues. Russia has developed a national payment system as an alternative to SWIFT, Visa and Mastercard after the US threatened tougher new sanctions that would target Russia’s financial system.

So far, Moscow has managed to partially phase out the greenback from its exports, signing currency-swap agreements with a number of countries including China, India and Iran. Russia has recently proposed using the euro instead of the US dollar in trade with the European Union.

Once a top-10 holder of US sovereign debt, Russia has all but eliminated its holdings of US Treasuries. Moscow has used the money to boost the nation’s foreign reserves and to build up its gold stockpile to stabilize the ruble.

Rt.com

Iraq hints at bigger role in Syria after U.S. withdrawal

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq’s prime minister said on Sunday that top security officials from Baghdad had met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, and hinted at a bigger Iraqi role fighting Islamic State militants as U.S. troops withdraw from Syria.

“This issue has a lot of complications,” Adel Abdul Mahdi told reporters, referring to U.S. President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement this month that he will withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq’s neighbor.

“If any negative development takes place in Syria it will affect us. We have a 600 km (400 mile) border with Syria and Daesh (Islamic State) is there,” Abdul Mahdi said.

The premier said the Iraqi delegation had visited Damascus to “gain the initiative, not just deal with the consequences” of any future Islamic State (IS) activity emboldened by the U.S. withdrawal. Iraqi news websites said the visit took place on Saturday.

Abdul Mahdi said Iraq sought to move beyond its current arrangement with Syria – under which it launches air strikes against Islamic State militants in Syrian territory – but did not got into more details.

“There are groups operating in Syria, and Iraq is the best way to deal with this,” he said, responding to a question about the possibility of increased involvement of Iraqi forces in Syria.

Iraqi Shi’ite Muslim paramilitary groups backed by Iran already operate inside Syrian territory against the Sunni Muslim militants of Islamic State.

Abdul Mahdi has previously said that about 2,000 Islamic State fighters are operating near the border in Syria and trying to cross into Iraq.

Islamic State was militarily defeated in Iraq in 2017, but has continued to launch guerilla-style attacks on security forces in the north of the country.

Reuters.com

Happy New Year!! Stay safe everyone.