Prime Minister Mr. Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani Received the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, and they signed a Temporary Agreement to Resume Oil Exports from KRI

Baghdad-INA 
Under the auspices of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Mr. Masrour Barzani, a temporary agreement was signed in Baghdad today by the Federal Ministry of Oil and the Ministry of Natural Resources in the Regional Government, according to which crude oil exports from KRI and the Kirkuk Governorate will resume.
 
Al-Sudani had met Barzani and his accompanying delegation before signing the agreement. They discussed the importance of strengthening cooperation between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq in various fields.
 
During the meeting, Al-Sudani highlighted the determination of the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq to resolve all inherited problems and address obstacles that needed to be managed professionally to advance the Iraqi people's interests in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the rest of the Governorates.
 
Remarks by the Prime Minister at the joint press conference with the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq:
 
 We welcome our brother, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, and his accompanying delegation on their visit to sponsor and supervise the signing of the temporary agreement between the Federal Ministry of Oil and the Ministry of Natural Resources to resume exporting oil from the KRI and Kirkuk.
 
 There have been negotiations over the past days following the verdict of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which stopped KRI oil exports. This causes severe damage to Iraq's total oil revenues.
 
  The damage does not impact KRI alone but also affects the total oil revenues established in the federal budget bill for the three years, according to what was approved by the Council of Ministers, which will cast a shadow over the deficit rate, which will rise significantly, so it was crucial to reach an agreement and an understanding and start implementing it.
 
 It is the responsibility of the technical authorities to implement the agreement and develop the required legal procedures immediately.
 
The agreement demonstrates the genuine and sincere determination of the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government to address all the problems and obstacles we inherited years ago, which were postponed and never reached solutions.
 
 We are waiting for the Oil and Gas Law legislation, which will address all the shortcomings accompanying this issue since forging the Iraqi constitution.
 
 We appreciate the efforts of the Iraqi and Kurdistan Regional governments' negotiating teams for the professional and responsible negotiations that took place, and we hope they will start immediately to implement the agreement.
 
 This agreement will pave the way for approving the federal budget bill and provision written according to the dialogue between the federal government and KRG, which addressed all outstanding issues, including the oil and gas issue.
 
There are outstanding files and contracts concluded years ago. We have inaugurated a new era in which we have the political will and the intention to prioritize the interests of all Iraqis, which requires that we address these outstanding issues in accordance with the principles of the Constitution and following public interest.
 
 Any delay in oil export will affect the total revenues in the 2023 federal budget, in which we charted the total expenditures and the operational and investment budgets. Thus the deficit will rise and cause great harm.
 
 This is the wealth of the people. We must remove all obstacles and resume oil exports to collect revenues for the public treasury and cover our needs according to what was decreed in the federal budget bill. Therefore everyone must abide by and implement this agreement.
 
Media Office of the Prime Minister
April 4, 2023