Iraq
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaking to reporters in Washington DC on March 26, 2024. Photo: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on Monday said that the discussions between Iraq and the United States on evaluating the future role of the US-led coalition forces in the country are ongoing, stressing that the withdrawal of the forces requires the establishment of a timeline.
“The discussions about security and military relations and on how to agree on the future mechanism are ongoing” Hussein told reporters including Rudaw’s Diyar Kurda in Washington, adding that the talks will also be on the agenda of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani’s upcoming visit to the US capital.
The Iraqi top diplomat stressed that the withdrawal of the forces requires Baghdad and Washington to reach an agreement on “the timeline, how, and when. What kind of forces are withdrawing and how are they withdrawing? All of these questions need answers, and these answers must come from both sides.”
The Iraqi premier is scheduled to visit Washington on April 15, and is set to meet with several top officials including US President Joe Biden.
Sudani in late January presided over the first round of talks of the joint US-Iraq Higher Military Commission (HMC), the purpose of which is to evaluate the coalition’s future role in Iraq based on the level of Islamic State (ISIS) threat, operational and environmental requirements, and the capabilities of Iraqi security forces.
The Iraqi government has repeatedly said it wants to end the presence of foreign military forces in the country in light of a series of US retaliatory strikes targeting state-linked militia groups that are backed by Iran.
Baghdad’s language has been clear regarding the fact that the commission’s aim is to bring an end to the presence of the coalition forces in the country, while Washington has described the step as a “transition” in the forces’ roles.
Reforming Iraq’s banking system
Hussein added that prior to Sudani’s visit to Washington several specialized committees from both sides will discuss various topics, including the banking system in Iraq.
“We had a frank meeting with the US Treasury Department, and they are not talking about [imposing] sanctions on Iraqi banks, but rather they are talking about taking some measures and reforming the banking system in Iraq,” he said.
The US banned transactions with 14 Iraqi banks for allegedly violating its rules in July last year. In January, Washington identified Iraq-based al-Huda Bank “as a foreign financial institution of primary money laundering concern,” and imposed sanctions on its owner Hamad al-Moussawi, who is also a member of the Iraqi parliament.
The sanctions came at a time when US interests across Iraq and Syria were the target of drone strikes from IRGC-backed militia groups. The group has claimed its attacks constitute a response to Washington’s support for Israel in its war in the Gaza Strip.
The attacks on US troops in Iraq and Syria were suspended in recent weeks following retaliatory strikes from Washington against pro-Iran groups.
Ali Mohsen al-Alaq, Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), said earlier this month that the US has agreed to review recent sanctions on Iraqi banks, adding that in the future, similar punitive measures will be taken in consultation with Baghdad.
Erbil salaries
Iraq’s finance ministry has transferred around 560 billion dinars to the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) bank account since March 11 to pay February salaries of the Region’s employees, excluding the security forces. The KRG has yet to distribute the wages, calling on Baghdad to send the full payment.
Hussein said that talks are ongoing between Baghdad and Erbil to address the outstanding issues relating to financing the salaries of the Kurdistan Region’s civil servants, stressing that “the issues have yet to be resolved as of this moment, but we will see what happens tomorrow and the day after.”
“From what I understood from the prime minister, he says they [Baghdad] will send the salaries for March,” the foreign minister added.
The Iraqi Federal Supreme Court in February transferred the responsibility of paying Kurdistan Region’s salaries from Erbil to Baghdad, and instructed the KRG and the federal government to “localize” the salaries of the Region’s employees.
As the government’s inability to pay its employees drags on for another month, civil servants from a variety of sectors went on strike on Sunday in multiple areas in the south of the Kurdistan Region - Sulaimani and Halabja provinces, Raparin and Garmiyan administrations, and Koya and Chamchamal districts.
Kurdistan Region civil servants were only paid for nine months in 2023 and since the start of the new year have only been paid their salaries for January.
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