The President of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masrour Barzani, announced his rejection of demands to hand over all oil and non-oil revenues to the Iraqi government, emphasizing that these demands are unconstitutional.
According to the Iraqi News Agency, Barzani stated in a press conference today that "our problem with the federal government is not just about the budget, but also Article 140 and the Peshmerga." He clarified, "Our demands are for the budget to be transparent and according to the constitution." Barzani added that "there are several proposals regarding the region's share, including exporting 250,000 barrels and handing over half of the other revenues," noting that "some are demanding the transfer of all oil and non-oil revenues, but this is unconstitutional and we do not accept it."
Barzani considered that the atmosphere of the upcoming elections has impacted the discussions regarding the budget and the region's share, revealing that the region's financial revenues have increased through organizing and collecting taxes.
Earlier, Iraqi MP Abdul Ilah Al-Naili from the State of Law Coalition stated that the Kurdistan Regional Government owes more than $120 billion that should be handed over to the Baghdad government before proceeding with any agreement between the two sides.
The financial and oil disputes between the federal government and the Kurdistan Region focus on the 2021 budget, concerning the region's financial share and the quantities of oil it exports outside the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company "SOMO," which it is supposed to hand over as part of the country's total exports.
