Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region Masrour Barzani and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani on Tuesday signed an agreement to resume the Region’s oil exports, calling the deal “important” for all components of the Iraqi state, Rudaw reports.
Barzani arrived in Baghdad on Tuesday morning, accompanied by a high-level delegation of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), where he met with Iraqi Oil Minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani, Prime Minister Sudani, and President Abdul Latif Rashid.
Barzani and Sudani announced the agreement in a joint press conference, referring to the deal as “temporary” without specifying how long it would remain in effect.
“This agreement is temporary but all its principles will be reflected in the federal budget and the oil and gas law," Prime Minister Barzani told Rudaw's Sangar Abdulrahman, adding that halting the Region’s oil exports impacts Iraq as a whole, not just the Region.
Similar remarks were echoed by Sudani, who acknowledged that a further delay in oil exports will impact the expected income for the 2023 federal budget.
“This agreement will pave the way for the passing of the federal budget,” said Sudani.
Both leaders expressed their gratitude for the continued cooperation between Erbil and Baghdad, with Sudani saying that the agreement “confirms the desire of both federal and Kurdistan Regional governments to combat the obstacles and problems we have inherited over the years."