Due to corruption, there are warnings of the collapse of the understandings between Baghdad and Erbil.
Due to corruption, there are warnings of the collapse of the understandings between Baghdad and Erbil.
7-22-2025
Information / Report:
Despite years of signing numerous political and financial agreements between Baghdad and Erbil, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s political parties continue to practice procrastination and evasion in fulfilling their constitutional obligations toward the federal government. It has become clear that these forces, which monopolize economic and political decision-making in the region, rely on creating recurring crises to evade the transfer of oil revenues and border crossing funds, at a time when the federal budget is under increasing pressure.
Kurdish leaders have recently used what they describe as “security attacks” on oil fields within the region to justify reducing or halting the transfer of funds owed to Baghdad. This move has been described by MPs and analysts as “fabricated and premeditated,” with powerful political factions in Kurdistan being accused of being behind these operations to give a semblance of security to a clear political and economic dispute.
These policies, pursued without transparency or oversight, not only threaten the equitable distribution of wealth, but also undermine the foundations of national partnership and open the door to deeper crises in the relationship between the center and the region. This is amid growing demands from within and outside Parliament for firm action to halt this excesses and ensure the fair and comprehensive implementation of constitutional laws.
*Disruption of agreements and systematic financial corruption
In this regard, Sadiquon bloc MP Rafiq al-Salihi accused Kurdish parties on Tuesday of “deliberately stalling” the implementation of constitutional and financial obligations, asserting that “the region has a habit of evading the transfer of oil revenues and border crossings,” in clear violation of agreements concluded with Baghdad.
Al-Salihi told Al-Maalouma, “The ruling Kurdish parties are implicated in massive corruption cases and have diverted public funds into personal fortunes inside and outside the country.” He added, “Kurdish citizens have become the direct victims of this corruption and live in tragic conditions, in light of the lack of services and high unemployment rates.”
He pointed out that “political tyranny and economic monopoly in the region have been accumulating for years, amid a lack of real oversight from the central government, which calls for a clear stance from the federal government to halt this excesses that threaten Iraq’s economic and political unity.”
* Deliberate targeting to justify reducing the financial share
. In the same context, political analyst Ali Fadlallah believes that talk of targeting the region’s oil fields is nothing more than a “fabricated pretext” exploited by Kurdish parties to evade the delivery of oil revenues to Baghdad.
Fadlallah told Al-Maalouma, “The parties behind these bombings are internal groups affiliated with the influential forces in Kurdistan, and not external entities, as is being promoted.” He emphasized that these operations are being used as media cover to reduce funds transferred to the federal government under flimsy security pretexts.
He added that “the region is blatantly stalling on implementing its agreement with Baghdad regarding the export of 400,000 barrels per day, and is relying on political and media maneuvers to evade its financial obligations,” calling for “an independent federal investigation and holding accountable those involved in tampering with the country’s resources.”
These statements demonstrate a clear political escalation in the relationship between Baghdad and Erbil, amid ongoing tensions over oil revenues and control of border crossings. Observers believe that the region’s continued procrastination in implementing agreements could exacerbate the political crisis and impact the implementation of the 2025 budget, threatening to delay salaries for regional employees and increasing pressure on the federal government to take decisive action.
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