Baghdad / Obelisk: Hassan al-Adhari, advisor to the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, confirmed on Friday that the latter’s decision to boycott the legislative elections scheduled for next October is “definitive.”
Al-Adhari said in a statement, “Al-Sadr’s decision not to participate in the 10-10-2021 elections is a final, decisive and irreversible decision.”
He added, “No member of the movement has the right to support, publish or promote any candidate whatsoever.”
And the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, announced last July, the boycott of the parliamentary elections, and at the same time decided to withdraw his hand from the current federal government headed by Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi, and the subsequent government as well.
Shafaq News/ The Presidency of Kurdistan Region reported the return of the region’s President, Nechirvan Barzani, on Friday to Erbil from Tehran after an official visit.
The Presidency of the Region said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, “After his arrival yesterday, Thursday, on an official visit to the Iranian capital, Tehran, and his participation in the swearing-in ceremony of the President of the Republic of Iran, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani met today with both the President of the Iranian Republic and the President of the Council of The Iranian Islamic Consultative Assembly, then returned to the Kurdistan Region this afternoon.”
The statement added, “Participated in the meetings of the President of the Kurdistan Region in Tehran, Rewaz Faeq, Speaker of the Parliament of Kurdistan, and members of the accompanying delegation consisting of the Chief of the Office of the Presidency of the Kurdistan Region, the Minister of Endowments and Religious Affairs, the Minister of Culture and Youth, and the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs.”
Published in: Aug 06, 2021: 4:26 PM GSTLast updated: August 06, 2021: 05:23 PM GST
Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Allawi said yesterday, Thursday, that Iraq recently resumed its talks with the International Monetary Fund to obtain a loan of between 3 and 4 billion dollars, after earlier halting such efforts to secure liquidity.
Talks between the International Monetary Fund and Iraq began last year, amid the pandemic-related demand shock that caused oil prices to fall, but the discussions were postponed as energy markets and the country’s foreign exchange reserves recovered. The government is now proactively looking forward to help cover its budget deficit.
“I don’t think we will reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund before the end of this year,” Allawi told reporters in Baghdad. “With the October 10 national elections approaching, the government and parliament will be sidelined.”
difficult balancing
The Ministry of Finance started the draft budget 2022 with the assumption of the oil price at $ 50 a barrel, considering that this level is not fixed.
The Iraqi Minister of Finance announced that the 2022 budget, which the ministry began preparing a few days ago, will have a reform dimension, as it “different from previous budgets” and reflects “the reality of Iraq’s obligations.”
He explained that the ministry will seek to submit this new budget to Parliament before the early parliamentary elections scheduled for October, adding that it will be a “reform budget, but it may be politically difficult.”
The minister is likely hinting at the difficulty of passing the new budget due to the high value of the deficit in it, as happened in the previous budget. In the proposed 2021 budget bill, which the government submitted to Parliament, the value of the deficit was estimated at 49 billion dollars. However, the deputies made up the difference by canceling debts and dues from the state, especially dues for Iranian gas and energy, and other payments for infrastructure.
The value of the deficit in the 2021 budget, as approved by Parliament, amounted to $19.8 billion, compared to $23.1 billion in 2019, knowing that Iraq did not approve the 2020 budget due to political tension.
The total value of revenues in the 2021 budget amounted to about 69.9 billion dollars, calculated based on the export of crude oil on the basis of a price of 45 dollars per barrel, and an export rate of 3 million and 250 thousand barrels per day. As for the value of the 2021 budget, it amounted to $89.7 billion, about 30% lower than the last budget approved in 2019.
The Minister of Finance explained that the price of a barrel in the new budget will be 50 dollars, which is an adjustable figure. However, the value of a barrel of oil in the market is currently much higher.
economic decline
Iraq, the second largest oil producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, is going through its worst economic crisis. The poverty rate in the country has doubled during the year 2020, and 40% of the population of 40 million is classified as poor according to the World Bank, while the Iraqi dinar has lost 25% of its value.
Corruption, which has cost Iraq twice as much as its gross domestic product, or more than $450 billion, is the main concern of Iraqis who suffer from a lack of electricity, hospitals and schools.
However, the minister said that Iraq’s financial situation has improved this year due to “the rise in the price of oil and the change in the exchange rate of the dinar.”
With regard to oil, Allawi believes that the current price levels are good for producers and balanced for consumers. Looking ahead, he predicts that the next battle in OPEC will not be over prices, but over who exports more, and if all members boost exports, prices will surely suffer.
The minister lamented ExxonMobil ‘s withdrawalfrom the country’s energy projects, but said he agreed that the company should stick to its policies.
Iraq is expected to sign an agreement with Total Energies SE before the current government’s mandate expires, although the completion of the contract may extend to the next administration, according to Allawi.
On July 25, the Iraqi Council of Ministers agreed to award Total Energies SE a contract to develop a natural gas field, allowing it to help boost oil production in the country. The French energy company aims to collect and process 600 million standard cubic feet of gas per day from the Ratawi field, according to the government.
As for the agreement that Iraq signed with Lebanon last month to export one million tons of heavy fuel oil annually – the price of which is paid through services and goods – Allawi said that Iraq will look to benefit from the Lebanese expertise in the fields of banking, education and tourism.
Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Allawi announced that the 2022 budget, which the ministry began preparing a few days ago, will have a reform dimension, stressing that the next year’s version “is different from previous budgets” and reflects “the reality of Iraq’s obligations.”
He explained in a statement followed by “Nass”, Friday (August 6, 2021), that the ministry will seek to submit this new budget to Parliament before the early parliamentary elections scheduled for October, adding that it will be a “reform budget, but it may be politically difficult.”
He said that the ministry “tried in the previous budget to do a similar thing”, as it “presented the budget in a way that shows officials the size of Iraq’s real obligations without paying them in arrears corners, so the number was large and was not politically acceptable, so it was amended and the budget was issued” in its current form. By this, the minister most likely hinted at the difficulty of passing the new budget due to the high value of the deficit in it, as happened in the previous budget.
In the proposed 2021 budget bill, which the government submitted to Parliament, the value of the deficit was estimated at 49 billion dollars. However, the deputies made up the difference by canceling debts and dues from the state in exchange for energy sources from the account, especially dues for Iranian gas and energy, and other payments for infrastructure.
The value of the deficit in the 2021 budget, as approved by Parliament, amounted to 19.8 billion dollars, compared to 23.1 billion dollars in 2019, knowing that Iraq did not approve the 2020 budget due to political tension.
The total value of revenues in the 2021 budget amounted to about 69.9 billion dollars, calculated based on the export of crude oil on the basis of a price of 45 dollars per barrel, and an export rate of three million and 250 thousand barrels per day. As for the value of the 2021 budget, it amounted to $89.7 billion, about 30% lower than the last budget approved in 2019.
The minister explained that the price of a barrel in the new budget will be 50 dollars, which is an adjustable figure. However, the value of a barrel of oil in the market is currently much higher and exceeds sixty dollars.
Iraq, the second largest oil producer in OPEC, is going through its worst economic crisis. The poverty rate in the country has doubled in 2020, and 40% of the population of 40 million is considered poor, according to the World Bank, while the Iraqi dinar has lost 25% of its value.
Corruption, which has cost Iraq twice as much as its gross domestic product, or more than $450 billion, is the main concern of Iraqis who suffer from a lack of electricity, hospitals and schools.
However, the minister said that Iraq’s financial situation has improved this year due to “the rise in the price of oil and the change in the exchange rate of the dinar.”
Meanwhile, Iraq is negotiating with the International Monetary Fund on a loan amounting to between 3 to 4 billion dollars, as the minister explained, hoping to reach an agreement with the Fund by the end of the year.
He explained that this “borrowing is of a monetary nature and gives credibility to the reforms” that the ministry wants to implement, and “their end depends on our current situation and the 2022 budget if we are able to present it to Parliament before the parliamentary elections.”
Ten Republican members of the US Senate signed a bipartisan bill to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for the use of military force in Iraq. The new legislation, led by Senators Todd Young and Tim Kaine, revokes both the 2002 Iraq War and 1991 Gulf War permits, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
The move is the latest sign that lawmakers from both parties are gaining momentum in their efforts to reassert Congress’ constitutional authority to declare war. At least 60 votes Passing the legislation requires at least 60 votes in the 100-member Senate, which means at least 10 Republican votes are needed to join all 50 Democrats for the legislation to succeed. On Wednesday, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to cancel two authorizations that give open approval to the use of military force in Iraq. It is noteworthy that the Biden administration revealed, weeks ago, that it supports efforts in Congress to repeal the authorization for the use of military force, issued in 2002, which reinforces lawmakers’ efforts to withdraw the authority to declare war from the White House.
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