Parliament is discussing the amendment to the budget law with government officials to proceed with its approval

The Parliamentary Finance Committee intends to discuss amending the country’s general budget law in the coming days with officials from the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

This was stated by Faisal Al-Naili, a member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, to Shafaq News Agency, saying that the committee will hold a meeting during these days to discuss amending the general budget law.

He added that after the meeting, a number of officials from the Ministry of Finance and Oil in the federal government will be hosted, in addition to officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government.

Al-Naili pointed out that after discussing the amendment to the budget law and hosting the officials, the date for the second reading of the law will be determined.

At the end of last November, the Finance Committee discussed during its meeting the draft law amending the first law to the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2025-2024-2023) No. (13) of 2023.

Atwan Al-Atwani, Chairman of the Committee, stressed the importance of these laws and emphasized discussing them and submitting some of them to the Council Presidency for a second reading, pointing to the formation of a body to estimate and monitor the distribution of revenues, in order to achieve sustainable development.

The Finance Committee discussed the articles related to the draft law amending the first law of the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2024-2025-2023) No. (13) of 2023, regarding the mechanism for exporting oil in the region and monitoring production costs, where the necessity of maturing the law to meet the requirements was emphasized, with the need to collect detailed data in numbers and tables to achieve the goal of the appropriate amendment.

On the other hand, the Finance Committee discussed the file of the proposed first amendment to the Law of the General Authority for Monitoring the Allocation of Federal Revenues No. (55) of 2017.

In June of last year, the Iraqi Parliament voted on the draft general budget law for the fiscal years (2023, 2024, 2025).

The value of the 2023 budget amounted to 197 trillion and 828 billion Iraqi dinars (about 152.2 billion dollars), with a total deficit of 64.36 trillion dinars (49 billion dollars).

The Iraqi government allowed the possibility of amending the articles or paragraphs of the law, which is what actually happened when the Council of Ministers approved amending Article (12/Second/C) of the Triennial Budget Law and referred it to Parliament for discussion.

Shafaq.com

Iraq breaks silence, demands Iran immediate commitment to gas supply contract

An Iraqi government official confirmed on Sunday that the decision to reduce Iranian gas supplies was “unilateral” and was made suddenly and in violation of the contract concluded between the two countries. He pointed out that the Ministry of Electricity reserves all its contractual rights and demanded that the Iranian side “immediately commit” to those terms.

The official told Shafaq News Agency, “Despite the Ministry of Electricity’s continuous efforts to advance the electricity sector and diversify its sources, the national system is exposed during the current cold wave to challenges beyond its control, as a result of unilateral measures by the Iranian side.”

He added that “the Iranian side recently reduced the supply of gas to the gas stations from (25) million cubic meters per day to only (6) million cubic meters, although the contract concluded between the two parties obliges the Iranian Ministry of Energy to supply (50) million cubic meters per day to Iraq during the peak winter and summer periods, for a period of five years, but this sudden measure led to the loss of approximately (6000) megawatts from the national grid.”

The government official pointed out that the Ministry of Electricity, while retaining all its contractual rights, confirms that it is continuing its intensive contacts with the Iranian side and is demanding that it immediately adhere to the terms of the concluded contract and ensure the delivery of the contracted quantities to ensure the operation of the power stations and provide reliable supply hours for citizens.

He pointed out that “the Ministry of Electricity took urgent measures, which included high coordination with the Ministry of Oil to pump additional quantities of alternative fuel, accelerate the completion of national gas investment projects, and activate emergency plans to maintain the stability of the electrical system.”

Since the 1990s, Iraq has been relying on a system of scheduled power outages due to the low levels of electricity production, and residents rely on private generators to fill the gap.

To fill this gap, Iraq imports electricity and gas from Iran for between a third and 40 percent of its energy needs, but it has difficulty paying for those imports because of U.S. sanctions that only allow Iran to obtain funds to buy non-sanctioned goods, such as food and medicine.

In parallel, Baghdad is counting on electricity interconnection projects with neighboring countries in order to secure stable energy supplies without the need for fuel to operate stations, in light of the instability of Iranian gas supplies, which recently caused Baghdad to lose more than 4,000 megawatts due to gas shortages and the cessation of interconnection lines with Iran.

The United States is pressuring Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, to reduce its dependence on Iranian gas.

To find an alternative pipeline, Iraq announced in August 2023 the signing of a preliminary agreement with Turkmenistan to import gas from it to meet part of the needs of the country’s power plants.

Shafaq.com

Parliamentary Integrity Committee accuses former Iraqi Central Bank employee of being behind US sanctions

The Parliamentary Integrity Committee accused, on Sunday, a former employee of the Central Bank of being behind the banking sanctions imposed on some Iraqi banks by the US Federal Reserve.

The number of banks sanctioned is 32 out of 72 banks operating in Iraq.

Member of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee, Vian Dakhil, said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, that a former employee of the Central Bank hid emails received from the Federal Bank, JP Morgan and Citibank to inquire about some topics related to the bank’s work.

She added that failure to respond to these issues led to some banks being punished, stressing that most banks do not know the reason for the penalties imposed on them.

On the other hand, economic expert Mustafa Akram Hantoush told Shafak News Agency that the statements of the members of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee are closer to reality than the statements of the Central Bank of Iraq.

He added that the collapse of the Iraqi banking system and the punishment of 32 Iraqi banks without any clear charges during a period of (a year and a half) is not normal and from the banking work perspective this may be the first incident of this kind in the world.

Hantoush pointed out that the worst thing is the lack of serious solutions by the Central Bank of Iraq to this situation, but rather the move towards cancelling the (Fitr) platform by the end of 2024 and handing over the dollar file to banks affiliated with foreign investors and banks (Jordanian and Gulf).

Hantoush wondered whether the Central Bank of Iraq knows that by not finding solutions for the Iraqi banking sector, it will fire the mercy bullet at the entire Iraqi banking system and it will be punished as a whole, which will lay off nearly (100) thousand workers in the Iraqi private banking sector in favor of Jordan and the Gulf States, and why are Iraqi banks not guaranteed to open an account for them in the correspondent banks in dollars (Citibank / JP Morgan) like the countries of the region did.

He continued, “Why has the mechanism for cooperation and auditing with Ernst & Young regarding transfers in currencies other than the dollar not yet been determined and announced?”

Shafaq.com

Masoud Barzani: The ground is prepared for a comprehensive peace process for the Kurdish issue in the region

The Kurdish leader and head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Masoud Barzani, considered on Friday that the ground is now prepared for a comprehensive peace process in the Middle East for the Kurdish issue.

This came in a speech he delivered during the launch of the Middle East Peace and Security Forum – MEPS 2024 at the American University in Duhok.

Barzani said in his speech, “In the Kurdistan Region, the elections were held despite expectations that they might not be held, or that problems would occur if they were held, but I would like to thank the citizens of Kurdistan who demonstrated their awareness and made us proud with this achievement.”

He added, “We hope that everyone will deal with legitimacy, and after the announcement of the official results by the Independent High Electoral Commission, the negotiation phase will begin between all parties to expedite the start of Parliament’s work.”

As the Kurdish leader also said, “We hope that you will support us so that in the future there will be one region, one parliament, one Peshmerga forces, and one government that represents all components of the region.”

He pointed out that in less than a year, legislative elections will be held in Iraq, and that the experience that took place in the Kurdistan Region can be used to benefit.

Barzani addressed the general population census in Iraq, saying: “We received assurances that there were no political objectives behind the census, and confirmation that it would not have any impact on the areas covered by Article 140 of the Constitution.”

He stressed that dialogue solves all problems, and today there is a good relationship between the regional government and the federal government and there is cooperation to solve the outstanding problems.

Barzani spoke about the situation in the region, saying: “The crises in the region and the scenes of war that we see in Lebanon and Gaza are unfortunate, and we hope that this war will stop and this tragedy will end,” stressing that “the most important thing of all is to keep Iraq away from this war.”

The Kurdish leader continued, saying, “We all expect that the situation will change after the new president is chosen following the US elections, and all expectations indicate that the administration of the new President Trump will be very different from President Biden’s policy.”

Shafaq.com

Because it contains a political aspect.. Parliamentary Wealth: The Oil and Gas Law faces difficulties

Member of the Parliamentary Oil, Gas and Resources Committee, Ali Abdul Sattar, confirmed today, Thursday, that the Oil and Gas Law has been facing difficulties since 2008.

Abdul Sattar told Al-Maalouma Agency, “The oil and gas law faces difficulties within the House of Representatives because it contains a political aspect between the region and the center.”

He added that “the law regulates financial matters and oil management for all governorates, especially the governorates producing oil and gas,” noting that “the reason for the law’s suspension is that it contains points of contention with the region.”

He explained that “the law is still in the government’s registry and has not been sent to the House of Representatives, despite the ongoing dialogues and discussions between the Baghdad government and the regional government.”

He added, “The dispute is still ongoing between Baghdad and Erbil over the oil file, and we are waiting for it to be resolved and for the law to be sent to the House of Representatives for discussion and approval.”

Almaalomah.me

Planning: Announcement of preliminary results of the general census in Iraq will be next week

The spokesman for the Ministry of Planning, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, said on Thursday that the ministry will announce the preliminary results of the general population census next week.

Al-Hindawi added in a special statement to Shafaq News Agency that the population census includes three stages, the first of which is the numbering and enumeration stage, which began on the first of September and ended on the 30th of October.

He added that the second stage is counting the population and recording their basic data, which takes place during the curfew on Wednesday and Thursday.

Al-Hindawi also pointed out that the third phase, which is the last, begins after the end of the second phase and continues until December 10, explaining that the third phase includes detailed data on the population, which are the social and economic characteristics of the population.

The spokesman continued by saying: The initial results will be announced after collecting and verifying the data, and this will be next week, either on Sunday or Monday, stressing that the announcement will be at an official press conference, and will include the results of the population of Iraq, the population of each governorate, the number of males and females, and age groups.

Shafaq.com

Center expects the number of seats in the Iraqi parliament to increase to 430 seats in the next session

The Strategic Center for Human Rights in Iraq expected, on Thursday, an increase in the number of seats of the people’s representatives in the House of Representatives during the upcoming sessions after conducting the general population census for the year 2024. However, it suggested canceling the paragraph that every 100,000 people should have a representative to avoid this increase in the number of seats and not to burden the country’s general budget.

The Vice President of the Center, Lawyer Hazem Al-Radini, said in a statement today that: Article (49) of the Constitution of the Republic of Iraq for the year 2005 stipulated that (the Federal Council of Representatives shall consist of a number of members at a rate of one representative for every one hundred thousand people of Iraq), and since the first elections for the Council of Representatives in its first session in 2005, the number of its members was 275 representatives, and in the second session it was 325 members, and in the third, fourth and fifth sessions that took place in 2021, 329 representatives were approved, and the excuse was the lack of a population census after 2003.

He added that the numbers have been confirmed and until a population census is conducted, the real number will be shown accurately, because all the data used previously is approximate, especially with regard to the distribution of the number of seats on the basis of each governorate and its share of 329 seats, indicating that there are governorates whose seats may increase and others may decrease as a result of the population movement that occurred between the governorates from 1996 to 2024, as there are security and economic circumstances.

Al-Radini continued by saying: After conducting the general population census, there will be two options for the House of Representatives. The first: amending the elections law by increasing the number of seats in the House of Representatives in its sixth session, which is expected to be no less than 430 representatives, and distributing them to 18 governorates, each according to its population according to the census.

He said: The second option is to work on amending Article (47) by cancelling the paragraph of one representative for every hundred thousand people and fixing the number at a maximum not exceeding (300) and submitting it to a referendum on the same day of the election of the next House of Representatives so that there are no financial costs that burden the state budget.

Shafaq.com

Putin calls Sudani over Middle East tensions

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani discussed, on Thursday, with Russian President Vladimir Putin via a phone call, the tensions in the Middle East and the joint relations between the two countries.

A statement from Al-Sudani’s office, received by Shafaq News Agency, stated that the latter received a phone call from Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which they discussed the joint relations between Iraq and the Russian Federation, and ways to develop them, in a way that achieves the mutual interests between the two friendly countries.

The call addressed developments in the region, stressing the importance of major countries making more efforts to end the war and prevent it from expanding in a way that threatens stability in the region and the world.

The phone call touched on the issue of energy and the importance of coordination between all concerned countries, within OPEC and the OPEC Plus group, in order to stabilize oil and gas prices within an equation that guarantees fair prices for exporters and consumers.

In turn, the Kremlin said in a statement, “President Vladimir Putin had a phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani, during which issues of bilateral cooperation in the fields of trade, economy, transport, logistics and humanitarian services were discussed,” according to the Russia Today Arabic website.

“Special attention was paid to the implementation of large-scale projects in the energy sector and the mutual goodwill to continue expanding friendly and mutually beneficial relations was noted,” he added.

The statement pointed out that “various aspects of joint work within the framework of OPEC+ were discussed, which allows for maintaining the stability of the global oil market, and the importance of continuing to coordinate steps in this regard was emphasized.”

The statement indicated that the Middle East issue was also discussed, in light of the unprecedented escalation of tension in the region.

Shafaq.com

Central Bank of Iraq sales exceed $6 billion in a month

The Central Bank of Iraq’s sales from the hard currency auction of the US dollar during October amounted to more than 6 billion dollars.

Shafaq News Agency correspondent stated that the Central Bank sold, during the days in which it opened its auction for buying and selling the US dollar in October, 6 billion, 38 million, 229 thousand, and 179 dollars, at a daily rate of 274 million, 464 thousand, and 962 dollars.

Our correspondent added that foreign remittance sales last month amounted to $5 billion, 672 million, 463 thousand, and 159, an increase of 94% compared to cash sales, which amounted to $365 million, 766 thousand, and 20.

Our correspondent pointed out that these sales were distributed between transfers abroad to finance foreign trade, and cash sales to banks, where the selling price of documentary credits and international settlements for electronic cards reached 1310 dinars per dollar, while the selling price of transfers abroad and the cash selling price reached 1305 dinars per dollar.

Shafaq.com

The population census process has begun in all of Iraq

This Wednesday morning, the general population census process began throughout Iraq, as population census teams began spreading throughout Iraq to conduct the first population census since 1997.

These measures were launched with the imposition of a curfew throughout Iraq, which began at 12 midnight last night and will continue until next Friday.

Burathanews.com