Wednesday, July 26, 2023
Coffee with MarkZ 07/26/2023
"Will Iraq succeed in quest to join World Trade Organization?," 26 JULY
Will Iraq succeed in quest to join World Trade Organization?
Iraq’s 19-year-long push to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) is gathering pace. Baghdad initially submitted a request to join the international trade body back in 2004. It currently sits as an observer member, while it works through the process of implementing regulations, strategies, and internal policies necessary to meet the conditions for full membership.
Israa Al-Jabari, the international trade coordinator at Iraq’s trade ministry, last summer told state media that her ministry is in charge of working to prepare the required documents for joining the WTO. “Iraq has the industrial, agricultural, and trade exchange qualifications. However, it needs to study and develop the applicable policies to align with the organization’s regulations,” Jabari said, adding that the country is “currently in the middle of the road to join.” The official insisted that it is important for Iraq to join the WTO to improve its access to global trade, industry, and economic opportunities, as well as aligning national economic and commercial policies with international standards.
As part of its efforts to join the WTO, the trade ministry has also held a workshop to coordinate with representatives of other key stakeholders, including the Iraqi Contractors Federation, the Iraqi Businessmen Union, and the Iraqi Private Banks League.
Suha Al-Kifaee, managing director of the International Islamic Bank who attended the workshop, told Amwaj.media that the meeting resulted in a number of recommendations that will help facilitate Iraq’s full participation in the WTO. Kifaee said accession to the organization “would contribute to the development and expansion of progress achieved in some financial services and would also ameliorate the foreign investment environment through the passing of a banks and investments law and the central bank law.” Such steps would open up Iraq’s isolated banking system to investment from foreign banks and help to transition the country away from a centralized model dependent on oil rents towards a more liberal, market economy.
Difficult road
The WTO was established in 1995 as the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Headquartered in Geneva, the organization helps set the ground rules for international trade agreements between states and regional trade blocs. It also facilitates dispute resolution.
The WTO’s 164 member states account for most international trade and include all of the world’s largest economies. The last country to join the organization was Afghanistan in 2016. There are 25 countries which currently have observer status, including Iran, Iraq and Syria. Iraq’s other neighbors—Jordan, Kuwait, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia—are members.
Mazhar Mohammad Salih, an advisor to the Iraqi government on economic affairs, told Amwaj.media that remaining isolated from the global trade regime comes at a great cost to Iraq. In his view, Baghdad loses out on involvement in decision making, investment opportunities, and dispute resolution facilitated by involvement in the WTO. Full membership would enable Iraq to mitigate risk by trading and benefiting from investment in ways that are governed by internationally-recognized rules.
Speaking to Amwaj.media, Salih highlighted the need for “Iraq’s entrance and regularity in the global economic sphere through the World Trade Organization and through dealing with international groups under terms which formally apply to all at a time when the world is still divided between northern and southern countries, or advanced industrial countries and developing countries.”
Iraq’s failure to join the WTO is partly a legacy of former leader Saddam Hussein’s regime (1979-2003). For instance, an international trade embargo and sanctions levied under Chapter VII of the UN Charter were imposed following the 1990-91 Gulf War, Salih said. “Iraq is still grappling with the repercussions, which leave the country with a negative economic development environment which hampers its natural integration within the global market,” he added.
Chapter VII sanctions are applied to countries deemed to threaten international peace and security. The penalties were initially applied to Iraq in 1990 following its invasion of Kuwait. They were only removed by the UN Security Council in 2013, with Iraq fully exiting Chapter VII status in Feb. 2022 pursuant to its final compensation payments to Kuwait. The latter should give Iraq a boost in its efforts to join the WTO.
Mindful of the changing regional context, Salih also argued that WTO accession is important for Iraq to facilitate economic integration with its neighbors and Arab League member states. This is particularly vital since many of these states are members of the WTO and, therefore, bound by its rules. “Any trade facilitation within the framework of regional agreements become ineffective if they are less than the facilitation under the World Trade Organization framework,” he underscored.
Going beyond signatures
The benefits of joining the WTO are evidenced in the ambition of successive Iraqi governments since 2004to pursue accession to the organization. But finding the political will to implement the policies and reforms that will allow the country to reach that goal are another matter.
Iraqi economist Haider Al-Rubaie noted that Iraq has since the fall of Hussein’s regime in 2003 faced “international obligations towards specialized agencies, entities, and organizations…Finding the right ground to implement these international obligations represents a first step towards adopting any new consensual international obligation.”
“The core of the issue is not signing international agreements…but rather in the state’s ability to implement and comply with them and the size of the advantages and benefits the country will accrue as a result,” Rubaie told Amwaj.media. Iraq has been working on WTO accession for nearly two decades now, holding discussions with the organization and other stakeholders, but has been unable to complete the process. This has held Iraq back, he argued.
“We realize the importance of Iraq joining the World Trade Organization,” Rubaie said, while also acknowledging “its dangers for countries whose economic, financial, and political structures are incomplete or fragile at times.” Putting aside the advantages, and possible pitfalls, Iraq has a long road ahead in its quest to join the trade bloc. Whether that ambition will be realized any time soon remains to be seen.
IRAQ NEWS: "CITIZENS & BANKS PROTEST DETERIORATION OF THE IQD" , 26 JULY
Bank owners and citizens protest deterioration of the Iraqi dinar following US ban on Iraqi banks
IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — Dozens of people protested in front of the Central Bank of Iraq in Baghdad and bank owners called for official action to stem a sharp increase in the dollar exchange rate Wednesday, after the United States blacklisted 14 Iraqi banks.
Over the past two days, the market rate of the dollar jumped from 1470 dinar per dollar to 1570 dinar per dollar. The jump came after the United States listed 14 Iraqi private banks among the banks that are banned from dealing with U.S. dollar due to suspicions of money laundering and funneling funds to Iran.
The ban was imposed on July 19 by the U.S. Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
“The listing of almost one third of the private banks as banned from dealing with the U.S. dollar will have negative consequences from many perspectives,” Haidar al Shamaa, owner of a private bank in Baghdad said at a news conference Wednesday.
He called on “the brothers at the Iraqi government to work… to undo the damage which occurred to us specifically, and to the Iraqi banking section in general.”
Protesters organized by a group calling itself Thuwar Tishreen (October Revolutionaries), which is connected to a movement that started mass protests in Iraq 2021, also demanded that the government take action to halt inflation.
On Sunday, the Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani met with Mahdi al Alaq, governor of the Central Bank of Iraq and discussed measures to stabilize the dinar price against the dollar.
A similar dive in the value of the dinar took place earlier this year after measures taken by the United States late last year to stamp out money laundering and the channeling of dollars to Iran and Syria from Iraq severely restricted Iraq’s access to hard currency.LINK
"IRAQ BOOTS ON THE GROUND REPORT" BY FIREFLY, 26 JULY
Frank26 (KTFA)
Articles Quote:“The parallel price means the exchange rate of the dollar in the market and exchange offices, and not the official rate set at 1132 dinars per dollar, according to the decision of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Iraq, which was approved by the Council of Ministers.”
That rate is the goal of the CBI right now…They’re telling the world, citizens, everybody, you that their official rate is 1132. Yet what you see on the CBI website is 1320.
…Why? Because they are trying to de-dollarize.
Why? So they can bring in the new exchange rate with the new currency and new value.
Why? Because that is the only way Iraq will be able to protect itself from…Iran that steals their money…
[Iraq boots-on-the-ground report]
F IREFLY: The CBI is saying the banks are to refrain from using the American dollar but they can use the dinar and they can use international currencies outside of Iraq other than the dollar.
About two weeks ago it was nothing but IMF, last week it was nothing but the government of Iraq and now this week it’s all about the CBI. The CBI took the microphone, ‘Get out of our way!’… Who? Basically themselves. Who’s in charge of monetary reform? CBI. Who’s gonna receive the new exchange rate? The GOI. Who’s doing all this? Alaq, the governor of the CBI and Sudani the PM of Iraq. They’re sitting there saying, ‘Get out of our way.’ Who? Mainly those little things are Iran. It’s the parliament in Iraq which is Iran influenced…
DINARLAND UPDATE, 26 JULY
Mountain Goat
On Thursday, the Central Bank of Iraq issued instructions to all licensed banks and non-bank financial institutions not to deal in dollars with 14 of the Iraqi banks. I can see that if these illegal dollar cash transactions continue the CBI will close down these banks.[via PDK]
From Iraq:
“The crisis of the rise of the dollar returns to the fore…and an upcoming parliamentary procedure”
We are starting to see this number…this parallel price of 1132 for the dinar against the dollar. It is not trending there yet but is part of what they have been doing the last few days…They are doing this in articles all the time. They list the rate one way…then in the same article its listed another. The important part is they are trying to get to the parallel rate. I have been told repeatedly that when they do they are ready for the big rate change. At least this is progress…This thing is going to take however long it’s going to take whether we like it or not…It’s going to happen guys.
Rumors are all over the place right now…that today is going to be huge and tomorrow will be great…I am hearing a lot about the 27th for a few days now…rumors that people have money …I just have not seen that economic receipt yet. But, I am seeing a lot of people under an NDA or being effectively “hushed” right now. That makes me feel warm and fuzzy…
I have been getting calls and messages all afternoon about chase banks…about systems being down, remodelings, closing branches, adding virtual branches >…all kinds of craziness. Rumors are flying and it's very interesting whats happening at Chase as they prepare for the brand new system…The official story is they are simply downsizing banking. More and more people are going electronic… they are automating as much as they can to save on labor. The unofficial story is a number of employees are telling folks they were told to expect a lot of new wealthy customers. We are gearing toward wealth management.
Since December 2021 they started to build the country. They started to fix their economy. They start to fix their private sector. They start to fix their banking system…international system …the dollar against the dinar…the dinar himself…He needs a lot of work. I told you before..whoever put the dinar down, that’s the person who’s gonna put the dinar back up…It’s not the CBI. It’s not the government of Iraq and it’s not government of the United States.
The government of the United States can help, yes. The government of Iraq can help, yes. The CBI can help, yes. The call is the Treasury. The call is on Forex. The call is on all this World Bank and all that stuff. It’s not on CBI…The CBI can only get better, do better a job and get stronger and get more money, more reserves, more goals, more things like that for the dinar to go up for these people to decide, ‘Okay, Iraq has this, this, this, this, the dinar is worth this much.’ …Iraq is doing a lot better, yes.
They’ve been having problems with the parallel market…but they’re going to actually try to resolve it…Right now the dollar and dinar are being used in the country…multi-currency practices aren’t supposed to happen. There’s legitimate reasons for them to be able to use the dollar…the dinar is the currency of choice from the central bank. It’s by law…
THE BIG CALL HIGHLIGHTS, 26 JULY
Tues. 25 July Bruce, The Big Call The Big Call Universe (ibize.com) 667-770-1866, pin123456#
- Sources were under NDAs
- The Iraqi Dinar and Dong were trading up in value.
- Currency Rates were very high.
- The new financial system QFS in conjunction with the USN and Star Link System were ready to come online and be implemented starting at midnight tonight Tues. 25 July and will go through midnight Wed. night 26 July.
- The USN was gold/asset-backed and coming out
- You can have up to $8,500 in the new USN cash at your appointment.
- Bond Holders will get access to their funds on Wed. 26 July or more likely on Thurs. 27 July.
- A Redemption Center person said we would get notification for our appointmentsWed. 26 July or Thurs. 27 July.
- A Contact tight with Citibank said Citibank would start exchanges on Friday 28 July.
- The general public Tier 5 would start on Thurs. 3 Aug.
- A Bond Holder Paymaster said the USN would come out Wed. 26 July, GESARA would be announced on Thurs. 27 July and the rollout of NESARA would happen on Sun. 30 July or Mon. 31 July.
- Med Bed appointments can be made at your exchange appointment.
- We should have four impeachments start this week.
- The start of Joe Biden’s impeachment began today Tues. 25 July.
🚨Iraq HCL Done & Completed!!! BY REINALDO JC, 22 NOV
Reinaldo JC @SmoothRey Iraq HCL Done & Completed!!! According to the Acting Minister, Erbil and Baghdad have now reached an agreemen...
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Frank26 [Bank story] This time we didn't go down, we just called [the bank]... We said we want to see if we can exchange some cu...
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Bank appointment for Currency EXCHANGE Instructions/Checklist Bank Name_________________________________________ Bank 800#____________...
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Walkingstick All these meetings that the CBI had with all these agencies that were helping them with their monetary reform are done. Al...