Al-Fayaz Emphasizes Resilience of Iran-Iraq Bond Amidst Regional Complexities
In a powerful affirmation of unity, Al-Fayaz, a prominent figure in Middle Eastern politics, has emphasized the bond that ties the nations of Iran and Iraq together, a bond that has proven resilient despite numerous attempts to drive a wedge between these two historically connected nations.
Unity Amidst Pressure and Complexity
Al-Fayaz’s statement comes as a bold testament to the fraternity and cooperation that has always characterized the relationship between Iran and Iraq. This unity, he argues, has held strong even in the face of external pressures and the region’s often complex political landscape. In many ways, the bond between Iran and Iraq is a model of resilience, an enduring connection that has withstood countless challenges over time.
A Historical Perspective
Indeed, the history of Iran and Iraq is filled with moments of solidarity. Even in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, Iran extended sympathy and support to America, despite a contentious historical relationship. The same resilience is evident in their response to regional challenges, such as the US air strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s appointee to head the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force. Iran’s strategy of projecting influence and protecting its interests throughout the Middle East, often through proxy wars or asymmetrical strikes, has not weakened the Iranian-Iraqi bond.
The Future of Unity
With the possibility of major conflict with the United States on the horizon, Al-Fayaz’s remarks serve as a reminder of the importance of unity and solidarity. The Iranian and Iraqi nations, he argues, must maintain this unity for the stability and prosperity of both nations. It is a call to resist divisive tactics and to remember the strong historical bonds that have brought these two nations together. In the face of external pressures and regional complexities, the unity of Iran and Iraq remains a beacon of hope and resilience.
You guys keep forgetting they rely way way too much on oil revenues for their budget. That has got to change before you can really make any major changes to the Iraqi dinar exchange rate...
Article: "Parliament is awaiting the 2024 budget schedules...preparing for major changes in numbers" Remember I told you if they're going to make any kind of change to the exchange rate it would happen at the end of the year or before the beginning of this next year 2024.
The reason for that is businesses in Iraq have to prepare their budgets...based on what the government in Iraq does...The fact that they're saying they need to reconsider the total revenues and expenditures for the year make me wonder what it is they have up their sleeve. There's no guarantees that's what's going to happen but if they are going to make a change to the exchange rate this would be the time to do it.
Al-Sudani in 2023: A service-oriented journey filled with obstacles
Shafaq News / Evaluating any government's performance after just one year is challenging. However, Iraq in 2023 has seen tangible achievements, particularly in providing long-lacked basic services since 2003. Despite hurdles on economic and security fronts, the administration led by Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani managed noteworthy progress.
The birth of Al-Sudani's government in October 2022, following a challenging coalition-building process, as stated by political analyst Sabah Al-Akeeli, "is marked by political and popular support. It sets itself apart from past governments by prioritizing services as its primary governmental agenda." Al-Sudani's leadership is characterized as a "Service-Oriented Government," emphasizing a national project to deliver various types of services across the country.
Al-Sudani’s achievements
Sabah Al-Akeeli, in an interview with Shafaq News Agency, highlighted the challenges faced by Al-Sudani's administration due to past burdens. He mentioned the government's efforts to allocate necessary funds to complete stalled projects, some of which were at 70% completion or more, and a significant number were successfully completed.
Regarding investment, Al-Akeeli explained that two major projects, the Grand Faw Project overseen directly by Al-Sudani and the establishment of the Large Development Road, stood out as promising initiatives that would positively impact the Iraqi economy. These projects are counted among the achievements of Al-Sudani.
Al-Akeeli continued, "Arguably, Al-Sudani's government exhibits superior performance compared to previous governments within the timeframe it has operated. This is evident through numerous projects aimed at alleviating congestion in Baghdad, including 16 projects—a feat unprecedented since 2003."
He further added, "In terms of oversight, Al-Sudani has surpassed the efforts of previous governments in combating corruption. He has actively pursued and termed corruption as a 'pandemic', leading to the referral of many corruption cases to the judiciary."
Regarding administrative reform, Al-Akeeli clarified, "Al-Sudani established committees to evaluate the performance of general directors. There have been significant changes in the administrative system, positively impacting the performance of governmental institutions."
Moreover, Al-Sudani stands out from previous governments by presenting a draft of the federal budget for three years. Past governments faced significant challenges in delaying budget approval, which affected the implementation of governmental programs. This accomplishment is noteworthy.
Al-Akeeli also highlighted another achievement of Al-Sudani's government, stating, "The successful organization of local council elections, marked by the exceptional performance of the Electoral Commission and the provision of security during the electoral process, was a promise fulfilled by Al-Sudani."
He emphasized that the government has pledged 2024 as a year of reconstruction and development, granting some authority to governorates in implementing Article 21 of the Provincial Councils Law.
Challenges
Since assuming power, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani's government encountered a myriad of challenges, particularly in the economic, security, and anti-corruption domains. However, the rise in oil prices somewhat alleviated these challenges, enabling Al-Sudani to address numerous issues. This was mainly due to his focus on a highly service-oriented approach, as highlighted by political science professor Issam Al-Faily from Al-Mustansiriya University.
Al-Faily noted that "the service-oriented approach adopted by Al-Sudani allowed him to address many issues. As commonly understood, the service dimension is the primary driver for stabilizing any government." He added, "Al-Sudani succeeded in the employment sector by creating numerous jobs, although some might find it a strain on the budget practically. However, Al-Sudani believed that allocating these funds to citizens was more crucial than letting corrupt individuals embezzle them."
Moreover, Al-Faily mentioned that "Al-Sudani's government succeeded in addressing many issues between the central government and the Kurdistan Region (KRI). Despite pressures from factions opposing federalism and the rights of regional employees, Al-Sudani managed to pay salaries. Some factions even criticized Al-Sudani at the last moment, accusing him of unilaterally deciding to pay the salaries of regional employees. However, Al-Sudani refrained from escalating tensions with political forces in this regard."
Al-Faily continued, saying, "Al-Sudani also succeeded in enhancing relationships with several Arab and regional countries that previously considered Iraq a crucial regional power."
He highlighted that "Al-Sudani's presence and his handling of some issues led to the emergence of various obstacles. Some parties believed that Al-Sudani's actions did not align with the political agreement. He was particularly sharp on the issue of bearing arms, with some parties accusing those who targeted Erbil Airport, Ain al-Assad base, and governmental areas of acting outside the law."
Al-Faily concluded, stating that "there were indeed numerous problems this year, but evaluating the performance of any government within just one year is challenging. Overall, Al-Sudani succeeded in creating relative tranquility and stability. However, this success would not have been possible without some form of collaboration between the factions forming the government. Meanwhile, there are still factions that adhere to a state-severing process."
Unfinished projects
Abbas Al-Jubouri, Director of the Al-Rafid Media and Strategic Studies Center, observed, "The accomplishments attained during this period, despite being few, were significant. This is particularly noteworthy considering the considerable backlog of stalled projects, numbering over 50,000 diverse projects spanning roads, bridges, residential buildings, agriculture, and industry. The exceptional effort was focused on services directly impacting people's lives."
On an international level, Al-Jubouri clarified, "Al-Sudani’s government succeeded internationally through its amicable relations with Gulf, Arab, and foreign countries and managed to host the Gulf 25 tournament in Basra."
Regarding the economy, Al-Jubouri stated, "Achievements included reducing the dollar to 1320 (the official rate), increasing retirees' salaries, expanding the social security network, and permanently securing Law 315 holders' positions. However, there were prior accumulations that negatively impacted the economic situation, so what was achieved was essentially from ground zero."
Supporting minorities
Al-Sudani’s government has issued numerous resolutions and directives aimed at supporting minorities. Among these decisions is a Cabinet decision regarding the preservation of employees from the same component and appointing individuals from this same component to vacant positions within the staff movements across all state institutions, according to Khalef Sinjar, the Prime Minister's advisor on Yazidi affairs.
Sinjar further stated, "There was also a decision to grant ownership of lands and houses to the Yazidis in Sinjar after almost 50 years of deprivation. Additionally, several symbolic decisions were made on occasions such as the festivals of the Yazidis, Christians, and Mandaeans." He affirmed that "the government is working in line with its governmental agenda to implement the Sinjar Agreement, facilitate the return of displaced individuals, and compensate those affected by terrorist activities."
The facts are in the pudding. Anybody that says it's never going to happen has not done any study...When people do that I think it's reckless and I don't think they've done their research properly...
We have been watching some of the most fantastic news articles... We can clearly say we have the confidence Iraq is going to be going international...We see evidence of that in a lot of different ways...They're doing things in a big way...The U.N. is saying Iraq has emerged...
Iraq is going to go international. We don't have very long time to wait as far as what they are telling us . If they throw us a curve ball and we find out something different, don't shoot the messenger...I hope you have a Happy New Year and I think we're going to be moving forward with some really positive information.
Multi-currency practices are using more than one currency. For instance if you're using the dinar and the dollar, that's multi-currency practice within internal circumstances. That's going to go away.
Chambers of Commerce: Positive government steps that will attract major merchants and international companies
Today, Saturday, the Federation of Iraqi Chambers of Commerce confirmed the existence of positive government steps that will attract major international merchants, companies, and labels. While it identified the most prominent tax problems, it pointed out that “merchants’ lack of confidence” is the most important obstacle to tax reform.
The president of the federation, Abdul Razzaq Al-Zuhairi, said, “Entering the electronic platform to pay taxes has become inevitable and will be implemented within the time frame set by the General Tax Authority, but there is a major problem represented by small merchants who now represent the majority, as they are forced to go to the parallel market,” noting that “There has been an old fear for decades between the merchant and the government.”
He pointed out that "a positive tax system has been launched, but we need to restore trust between the merchant and the government."
He added, "The majority of the Iraqi market is made up of small merchants, due to the circumstances that Iraq went through," adding, "The equation will change during the coming period, and large international companies and labels and major merchants will enter the Iraqi market, while small merchants will be shoppers."
He stated that "taxes created a kind of gap and problems for many Iraqis, including loss of files, similarity of names, taking deposits without refund, calculating the tax twice, and other problems."
He stressed that "the recent decision of Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani will change many of those problems mentioned above, but implementation needs to be strict."
He pointed out that "Iraq deals with white money with countries around the world, so the issue of the electronic platform is positive, and it is a global step."
The General Authority for Taxes announced earlier the adoption of electronic payment in a binding manner for the payment of taxes, starting from January 1 of the new year 2024, while confirming the start of implementing the self-assessment system for the first time in Iraq.
The Director of the Authority, Ali Waad, confirmed earlier that the General Tax Authority seeks to obtain proper and legal approvals for the recommendations that were presented by us during the tax reform conference held on the sixth day of this month.
He pointed out that among the most important recommendations for tax reform are:
First: stabilizing property and land values, which will reduce human intervention and reduce opportunities for corruption, which will help in implementing the comprehensive electronic system.
Second: The Authority seeks to encourage local companies to pay all taxes due related to these companies by amortizing the fines and interest they owe, provided that they pay the original tax due.
Third: The Authority is seeking to submit a proposal to amortize 50% of the fines and interest imposed on foreign companies, especially oil companies, on the condition that the original taxes due are paid as an important basic step, to follow the problem-free policy.
Fourth: The Authority seeks to solve the problem of similarity of names, this major problem that exists in the General Authority for Taxes, and it is an existing and previous problem, by canceling all the double names that were previously provided to the General Authority for Taxes, and returning them to the official authorities to complete them and adding the triple name or the first name. Mother, wife, or date of birth.
As for the common triple names, including the name (Ali Hussein Ali), which is a very common name and greatly obstructs tax accounting operations, especially for taxpayers in Baghdad and the governorates, so the Authority proposes to return these names to the authorities that sent them to the Authority, to provide them with full information.
Fifth: The Authority is working to complete the stages of networking between the Authority’s center and the rest of the state institutions, including ministries, agencies and general directorates, and to link them electronically, by creating electronic interfaces (WebCite) to provide electronic services, especially to taxpayers.
Sixth: The Authority seeks to cooperate with state departments to electronically connect and adopt the (barcode) system between the Authority and other government departments, as it has been applied in several departments, including all traffic directorates in Baghdad and the governorates, as well as in the company registrars’ department and in the real estate registration departments between the governorates and Baghdad.
Seventh: The authority’s management seeks geographical expansion by opening new branches to reduce the momentum occurring in some branches in the governorates, as well as increasing the tax base, in addition to increasing the number of taxpayers, and simplifying procedures for citizens, as the authority obtained the approval of the Minister of Finance, Taif Sami, to open two branches in each. From the governorates of Basra and Diwaniyah, and one branch in each of the holy governorates of Karbala and Anbar.
Eighth: The Authority is seriously seeking to implement an electronic system, which will contribute significantly to speeding up transactions, reducing cases of corruption, and increasing state resources link