Masrour Barzani: The agreement to resume Kurdistan Region oil exports is temporary, and we are concerned about it.
Masrour Barzani: The agreement to resume Kurdistan Region oil exports is temporary, and we are concerned about it.
2025-11-19 03:38
Shafaq News – Duhok
On Wednesday, Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani described the agreement reached between Erbil and Baghdad regarding the resumption of the region’s oil exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan as “temporary and not permanent,” reiterating the importance of enacting an oil and gas law to regulate the management of the country’s natural resources.
These statements were made during his participation in a special dialogue session on the sidelines of the Middle East Peace and Security Forum/MEPS 2025, in its sixth edition, organized by the American University in Duhok.
Masrour Barzani said that the oil and gas law currently in force in Iraq is “old and does not suit the current stage,” stressing that the agreement to resume oil exports from the Kurdistan Region is temporary, and that a permanent agreement would be based on the existence of an oil and gas law enacted by the Iraqi Parliament.
He expressed his hope that Baghdad had understood that the suspension of the region’s oil exports had led to billions of dollars in losses for Iraq, and for Kurdistan in particular, and that these losses had not yet been compensated.
Masrour Barzani also pointed out that there were no winners in halting oil exports, considering that this decision was political.
The regional president expressed concern about this temporary agreement, which could lead to a halt in exports once again, stressing that there was no justification for suspending those exports.
He added: I hope that Baghdad understands that the financial revenues generated from the region’s oil exports increase the state treasury’s revenues, as they benefit not only Kurdistan but also all of Iraq, and are in everyone’s interest.
Masrour Barzani pointed out that despite the resumption of oil exports from the Kurdistan Region, Baghdad is still delaying the funding of monthly salaries for employees and workers in the public sector in the region.
shafaq.com
