“Encouraging successful visit by Kurdistan Regional Government delegation to Baghdad for talks with the Iraqi government on budget and hydrocarbons. Resolution of these long-standing issues serves the Iraqi national interest and contributes to energy independence and regional stability,” Ambassador Alina Romanowski said in a tweet.
A KRG delegation, directed by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, and led by the Region’s minister of finance arrived in Baghdad on Saturday to resume talks with the Iraqi government over outstanding issues.
The delegation met with different Iraqi officials where they discussed “the latest developments in the budget bill, oil and gas law, article 140, and compensation of the Kurdistan Region’s people as a result of the policies of the past Iraqi regime against the people of the Kurdistan Region,” read a statement from the KRG at the time.
The delegation returned to Erbil on Tuesday, with a promise to continue dialogue with the federal government.
“The Kurdistan Region delegation’s talks with Baghdad will continue until we reach a resolution for all outstanding issues, especially the hydrocarbons law and the budget bill,” Head of the Kurdish Council of Ministers’ Diwan, Omed Sabah told Rudaw.
The budget has been a frequent point of contention between Erbil and Baghdad, especially after the Kurdistan Region's decision to sell its oil through Turkey. Almost two years after Iraq passed its last budget law, Erbil and Baghdad remain in disagreement over several key issues. Kurdish government delegations have traveled to Baghdad on several occasions to reach common ground with the Iraqi government, however, they have yet to reach a resolution.
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