Iraq
Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s former foreign minister and senior politburo member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), speaking to Rudaw in Washington D.C. on September 29, 2022. Photo: Screenshot/Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Senior Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official Hoshyar Zebari on Saturday labeled Baghdad’s halt of salary payments to the Kurdistan Region’s civil servants as a “political and programmed” decision.
“The decision from the Ministry of Finance is a political and programmed decision against the [Kurdistan] Region and its constitution in general, and it will undoubtedly have repercussions,” Zebari said on X.
Tensions between Baghdad and Erbil escalated after the Iraqi finance ministry on Wednesday announced that it would no longer send the Kurdistan Region’s financial entitlements from the federal budget, including the salaries of over one million civil servants of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
The decision triggered an outcry from many Kurdish political parties, who held a meeting on Saturday, chaired by the KDP, and denounced Baghdad’s decision to halt payments to the Region as “against the will of the people of Kurdistan and the political and legal framework of the Kurdistan Region.”
The parties said Baghdad must not politicize the rights of civil servants and said that they favoured resolving the matter through dialogue.
“What is the interest of Mr. [Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’] al-Sudani and the ruling Coordination Framework in igniting the crisis of funding salaries for regional employees at this particular time, while the country is approaching national elections? Perhaps these are technical issues at play,” Zebari stressed.
Finances are a frequent source of friction between Erbil and Baghdad. In stopping the payments, Baghdad accused Erbil of failing to hand over its oil and non-oil revenues and claimed that the KRG had received its full share of the federal budget for 2025.
The KDP said on Thursday that it would take a “serious stance” if Baghdad fails to pay the May salaries by June 6, which coincides with the Islamic holiday Eid al-Adha.
The finance ministry’s decision to cease payments to Erbil came on the heels of the KRG inking two new oil and gas deals with American firms, drawing the ire of Iraq’s oil ministry, which has taken legal action.
A delegation from Baghdad is expected to visit Erbil and meet with top Kurdish officials and politicians to resolve the financial issues.
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