Iraqi President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid voiced his country’s readiness to support ongoing negotiations between Iran and the United States.
In an interview with Al-Sharq TV, Rashid stated, “We welcome the ongoing negotiations between Iran and the United States. We support their success and are ready to provide everything necessary to help achieve constructive results.”
Commenting on the upcoming Arab Summit in Baghdad, President Rashid said its timing is critical given the multiple crises facing the region, including in Palestine, Sudan, Lebanon, and Syria. “We will work to address these issues, issue resolutions, and recommendations, and strive to implement them,” he added.
Rashid stressed the importance of unified support for the Palestinian people, emphasizing the need to halt the violence, ensure the delivery of humanitarian and medical aid, and secure the Palestinian right to statehood.
He also welcomed the lifting of sanctions on Syria, stating, “We hope for security and stability for the Syrian people and for a democratic system that represents all communities.”
Addressing the parliamentary elections scheduled for November 2025, Rashid urged the participation of all political forces, stressing the importance of transparency and fairness in the electoral process.
Regarding outstanding disputes between Erbil and Baghdad, Rashid pointed to the absence of a national oil and gas law as a major source of tension. “Passing this law will resolve many of the problems between the federal government, the Kurdistan Region, and other provinces,” he concluded.
I want everyone to know that I have thought about having a “live” conference call however with my very busy schedule this simply is not possible right now. As we get closer to the reinstatement perhaps, I can juggle some time to do short update calls while we exchange or are about to exchange. This way you do not have to wait till the next Newsletter to get answers to your questions at that critical time. However this is up to each and every one of my readers as I cannot do all this without some appreciation for all my efforts of research and calls to Iraq.
Also, these up-front audio snip-its I include with the Newsletters are VERY, VERY important. You may want to listen carefully to them and then maybe even replay them. They are chock-full of information. Listen carefully!
There is some interesting news today and its mostly about what is currently happening in the middle east. This news is of the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum in Riyadh, President Trump’s visit to the middle east, the Arab Summit this weekend in Iraq, and the ongoing negotiations with Iran on the nuclear development issues. We need to stop and think about the importance of all of these events to our investment. Yes, each one of them will impact Iraq and many in a major way.
If you study what deals are being made in president Trumps visit to the Arab nation, we can see that there is a lot of money at stake. Thus, SECURITY is going to be huge to protect these investments of the U.S. Will these middle eastern nations finally wake up and help isolate Iran so we can have peace in the middle east and around the world, including in Iraq?
I know many of these so-called RV intel gurus have messed with your minds about how this RV is going to be implemented. Brainwashing is a hard thing to overcome. I can tell you that these banks stories are idiotic stories once again as well this every day / any day RV jibber jabber. Folks there is absolutely no justification to tell you such stories of any real significance in this time.
Shafaq News/ A widening gap between Iraq’s budgetary ambition and its fiscal capacity is forcing the government into stopgap financing measures, exposing how vulnerable the country’s oil-dependent economy remains to even modest shifts in global energy markets.
Despite a record three-year budget approved in 2023, the government has resorted to reallocating tax trust funds to cover public sector wages, in an unusual move that lawmakers see as a “clear signal” of tightening liquidity.
This budget, passed under Law No. 13, is based on a crude oil benchmark of $70 per barrel, but revenues briefly exceeded expectations early in the year, with oil trading around $75. However, prices have since fallen below $62 following the removal of OPEC+ production limits, cutting into the country’s main revenue stream.
With oil accounting for nearly 90% of government income, the fiscal impact has been immediate. Lawmaker Zuhair al-Fatlawi confirmed that the government had drawn from contractor-held tax deposits to meet payroll obligations. “This reflects a shortfall in liquid funds,” he told Shafaq News. “Routine revenue flows are proving inadequate.”
Ministries such as Health and Water Resources are operating without full allocations. Capital projects in Babil, Al-Diwaniyah, and Karbala have either slowed or halted due to inconsistent disbursements. “Some regions are funded, others are left waiting,”
al-Fatlawi emphasized.
Revenue Rigidity
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s Financial and Economic Advisor, Mudher Mohammad Saleh, defended the fiscal approach, pointing to mechanisms within the budget law that allow for flexibility. “The budget operates on the principle of fiscal space,” he explained. “It enables borrowing, resource reallocation, and controlled spending adjustments.” The government is authorized to borrow up to 64 trillion Iraqi dinars ($48.89B) if needed.
Iraq’s vulnerability is less about the oil price itself and more about the absence of diversified revenue sources. Non-oil tax collection remains underdeveloped, and budget execution is inconsistent across agencies. “Oil volatility is a risk, but institutional rigidity is the larger issue,” said a Baghdad-based analyst.
Notably, payment delays to contractors are triggering liquidity problems in the private sector, and further disbursement lags could freeze project pipelines and reduce market activity in a heavily state-led economy.
“Liquidity stress is contagious in Iraq’s fiscal ecosystem,” public finance expert Mustafa al-Faraj affirmed. “When escrow funds are repurposed, it undermines financial discipline and signals deeper structural imbalance.”
The IMF has noted that delayed infrastructure investment can cut expected GDP impact by up to 40%, weakening the effectiveness of public spending even when funding is eventually restored.
Tools Available, but Reforms Lag
Iraq’s Central Bank holds more than $100 billion in foreign reserves, offering a strategic buffer. However, economist Safwan Qusay cautioned against using reserves to plug structural gaps. “These reserves are meant for external stability, not internal liquidity.”
Qusay advocated for accelerating domestic reforms: enforcing utility payments, monetizing idle public assets, and revising land-use fees. “The state needs to act more like an investor and less like a passive payer,” he emphasized, estimating that if prices stay below projections, Iraq could face monthly shortfalls exceeding $1.5 billion.
In that scenario, options include tapping domestic bond markets or seeking external financing—a move that could further test fiscal credibility.
Disparities in budget transfers across provinces have also raised concerns about equity and governance. With the next national elections set for November 2025, prolonged underfunding in public services may carry political consequences, particularly in provinces already expressing frustration over project delays and financial uncertainty.
For now, Iraq is not in immediate fiscal crisis, but the warning signs are evident. Reliance on short-term measures to manage a structurally rigid and oil-dependent system has narrowed policy space, and without faster reform and revenue diversification, fiscal pressures could escalate into grave economic and political risks.
My guy (Haydre) came to me and said he spoke to his friend outside [Green zone] and this is what he was told - they don’t have the cash to fund projects, yes the CBI has the smaller denomination notes but can’t put them into circulation until they recover the majority of the 3 zero notes, they won’t recover the majority of the 3 zero notes until they revalue what they have.
They are stuck in a bad spot and don’t know how to get out of it.
They are going to be forced to revalue or go broke. Everything is waiting on the revaluation of their currency...
QUESTION: "How do they know the CBI has the lower notes?"
Al-Sudani: Iraq Is An Oil And Industrial Country That Has The Potential To Export Products To The Region
Energy and Business 2025-05-14 Shafaq News/ Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al- Sudani described Iraq on Wednesday as an "industrial country," not just an oil country, and that
it can meet the needs of the local market and countries in the region.
This came in a speech delivered via video link during the inauguration of the steel plant at the General Company for Iron and Steel in Basra Governorate, with a capacity of 600,000 tons annually.
He also launched the implementation work for the industrial city in Al-Zubair District,
and the Basra Chlorine and Caustic Soda Production Plant Project. Al-Sudani said in his speech,
"Iraq, in addition to being an oil-producing country, is an industrial country that possesses all the ingredients for the emergence of a national industry that meets the needs of the local market.
