Thread: Archive Latest News - Think Tank - 01/01/08 - 14/04/08

KRG Head of Foreign Relations responds New York Times
Falah Mustafa sent a response to The New York Times newspaper‘s report which recently published on Iraqi Kurds' intention in Kirkuk.

The KRG Head of Foreign Relations, Falah Mustafa, asserted in that response that Kurds do not intend to control Kirkuk city but rather call for implementing article 140 pertaining to normalizing the conditions of those areas where ethnic cleansing executed by the Baath regime.

Later, Falah referred to the KRG close relations with U.S. officials as well as expressing KRG’s support to the Nuri al-Maliki’s government.

The New York Times recently published a report citing the Iraqi Kurds’ intention to encompass and boost their authorities in Kirkuk city through implementing article 140.

PUKmedia :: English - KRG Head of Foreign Relations responds New York Times

President Massud Barzani Signs Peshmerga Retirement Law

Mr. Fuad Husain the head of Kurdistan Region Presidency said” President Massud Barzani signed Peshmerga Retirement Law after his approval on all its articles.”

After its discussion in KNA, the Law was raised to the Region Presidency in order to sign it. “President Massud Barzani, signed the law, after emphasizing that it will ensure all Peshmerga rights who strived for long years for the sake of Kurdish People freedom”, Mr. Fuad Husain added.

Mr. Fuad Husain also said” The law secured all the rights of Peshmerga Forces and reserved all their future privileges as they sacrificed against the successive tyrannical systems in Iraq. Kurdistan Region Presidency pays special attention to this law.”

PUKmedia :: English - President Massud Barzani Signs Peshmerga Retirement Law

Russia Forgives Iraq Billions in Debt

Iraq’s foreign minister won a long-sought agreement on Monday to write off most of Iraq’s $12.9 billion in debt to Russia, much of it dating to before the first gulf war when Saddam Hussein government purchased Soviet weapons.

Russia had, in principle, agreed to write off the debt as far back as 2004 but had been dragging its feet hoping for assurances that the United States-backed government in Baghdad would honor a large Russian oil claim, also dating to the Hussein era.

On Monday, Iraq’s foreign minister, Hoshyar Zebari, offered no public guarantees. Russian officials said they had won an assurance of favorable treatment, at least. In exchange, Russia will write off all but $900 million of the debt. Separately, Russia agreed to invest $4 billion in Iraq, including the Iraqi oil industry.

While the deals resolved the longstanding debt dispute, they were also a setback, of sorts, for the American policy of encouraging Iraq to open its oil industry to wide international investment and wean it of its ties to Russia.

At the time of the United States-led invasion in 2003, Iraq had accumulated $120 billion in debt; Russia’s agreement is important in convincing other countries, including the Gulf States that hold most of the debt, to offer similar terms as the government in Baghdad gr*****s with its finances.

Lukoil, Russia’s largest private oil company, will benefit from the new arrangement. It won the production-sharing agreement in Iraq in 1997, at a time when Mr. Hussein’s government was seeking Russian support for lifting United Nations sanctions, and has somehow managed to hold onto it through five years of war.

At the ceremony in Moscow, Russia’s minister of finance suggested the Iraqis were willing to honor, at least in part, the Russian deal but that a final settlement would have to wait the passage of a new oil law in Iraq’s Parliament.

PUKmedia :: English - Russia Forgives Iraq Billions in Debt

MP: Parliament might Accept Kurdistan Region Share of 17%

An Iraqi MP said today on condition of anonymity “it is expected that the federal budget law is going to be approved today. We expect that the Parliamentary blocs are going to approve Kurdistan Region share of 17%.”

In a press conference yesterday, the Iraqi Council of Representatives speaker Dr. Mahmoud al-Mashadani said that there is a disagreement on some points in the law, like Kurdistan Region share.

Al-Mashadani emphasized that this law will be ratified today, as well as the laws concerning the councils of provinces and the general amnesty for Iraqi detainees.

KRG announced that the percentage of 17% comes from statistics that approved in the census.

PUKmedia :: English - MP: Parliament might Accept Kurdistan Region Share of 17%

Iraqi FM: Russian Companies are Welcome

In a press conference, Iraq's foreign minister said Tuesday that Russian companies seeking to do business in his country won't be given advantage over companies from other countries.

Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari's statement came a day after Russia agreed to write off US$12 billion (€8.25 billion) - or 93 percent - of Iraq's US$12.9 billion (€8.87 billion) debt to Moscow, a gesture that appeared aimed at helping Russian companies win contracts in Iraq.

Zebari, on the second day of his trip to Moscow, said the debt write-off and prospects for Russian companies in Iraq were "two totally unrelated things."

Zebari told reporters that "doors are open" for Russian business, "but on the basis of fair competition with other companies."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday during a meeting with Zebari that Moscow was counting "on launching promising joint projects in the oil and gas and electric power sectors."

One major Russian oil company, OAO Lukoil, is seeking to regain a role in developing Iraq's giant West Qurna field.

Lavrov and Zebari on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at boosting trade, economic, scientific and cultural cooperation.

The Iraqi government has said its huge Saddam Hussein-era debt to various countries - estimated at more than US$60 billion (€41.26 billion) - was too big a burden for a nation trying to rebuild.

The United States has spearheaded the drive to get other countries to follow the U.S. lead and write off all their shares of Iraq's debts. Russia and other creditor nations pledged in 2004 to write off 80 percent of Iraq's debts.

And on the next round of talks between U.S. and Iranian officials on Iraqi security, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said "we're putting all our efforts into organizing the next round of Iranian-American talks in Baghdad. We expect the next round of these talks will start literally in the next few days".

He also said about the visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad "there is an invitation to President Ahmadinejad to visit Iraq. There is every reason to believe the visit will take place sometime at the beginning of March".

PUKmedia :: English - Iraqi FM: Russian Companies are Welcome

House Members Seek Travel Advisory Adjustment
State Department asked to alter advisory to reflect the safety and stability of the Kurdistan Region

More than a dozen members of Congress have asked U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to review the current travel advisory for American citizens traveling to Iraq and revise it to make it accurately reflect the safe and stable condition present in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

http://www.krg.org/uploads/documents/Iraq_Kurdistan_travel_warning_ltr_to_Rice.pdf

“To our knowledge, no Americans or citizens of other nations have been harmed by hostile actions in the Kurdistan region since the beginning of the war in 2003. Several other countries – including Austria, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Japan, and Great Britain – have reportedly altered their travel advisories to reflect this fact,” the congressmen wrote.

“If the current travel warning does not accurately represent the conditions on the ground, it could undermine our efforts to promote economic development in Kurdistan and other parts of Iraq,” the congressmen said. “In particular, the warning may dissuade the U.S. business community from investing and promoting the economic development of this important region. If the Department believes an adjustment to its current travel warning is warranted and changes it according, we believe the U.S. business community would be more likely to engage Kurdish officials in the development of Iraq’s infrastructure.”

The House members praised the strong alliance between the United States and Iraqi Kurds and said revising the travel warning would send a strong signal of encouragement and “further contribute to the stability and prosperity of the Kurdistan region.”

It is not unusual for the State Department to modify a blanket travel advisory and mark a distinction between safer and more dangerous parts of a country as real circumstances on the ground change within a nation; as has happened with Colombia.

Qubad Talabani, the US based representative for the Kurdistan Regional Government said the request for the revised travel advisory “underscores the recognition that Kurdistan is safe and secure and that all of its citizens are focused on creating, sustaining and defending a new economy and an emerging democracy.”

“We are gratified that so many members of the House and Senate have visited Kurdistan to see firsthand the work we have accomplished and where we plan to go,” Talabani said. He added, “We are thankful for those 15 members who have asked the State Department to make a more accurate and fair advisory in regard to the part of Iraq where so many are working so hard – and succeeding – to establish peace and progress.”

PUKmedia :: English - House Members Seek Travel Advisory Adjustment

Kurdistan: A State in the making?

In the coming days, a delegation of senior Kurdish leaders from the north of Iraq is expected to travel to Baghdad to try to resolve some of the outstanding issues that divide the country's politicians.


The meetings could be tense. There is growing resentment amongst Arab politicians about the gains the Kurds have made since the fall of Saddam Hussein.

Since then, a combination of canny politics, tough negotiating and their closeness to the US has ensured that the Kurds now punch well above their weight in the politics of Iraq.

The Iraqi president is a Kurd, Kurdish parties are part of the governing coalition and the Kurdistan region in the north of Iraq has a high degree of autonomy.

However, many issues that are critical for the Kurds - and Iraq - remain unresolved, including:

• the future of Iraq's oil industry
• the status of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk
• the national budget
• who should pay the salaries of the Peshmerga, the Kurdish fighters

Twin fears

In Irbil, it is easy to forget that you are in Iraq. The city, which is the seat of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), has all the hallmarks of a capital city in the making.

The Kurdish flag - red, white and green with a blazing yellow sun - flies from all the government buildings. The Iraqi national flag is nowhere to be seen.

At the airport, passports are stamped, Republic of Iraq - Kurdistan Region. The labyrinthine visa rules that apply in the rest of the country are not in force here.

A good place to judge local opinion is Khalil's teashop in the bazaar. Since the 1930s, Kurds have been coming here to enjoy the strong and sweet chai.

Khalil's is more than a teashop. It is an unofficial museum.

The walls are covered in photographs of key moments and figures in Kurdish history. Even Saddam Hussein - hated by Kurds - is here.

"Kurds and Arabs lived in this country like brothers, but when Saddam came he made a lot of problems between the Arab and Kurds," said the owner Khalil.

"He killed a lot of Kurdish people. He damaged the relationship between the Kurdish and Arab people."

Senior Kurdish politicians argue that it is this history that is shaping Iraq's current politics.

"The Shia are afraid of their past," said Dr Mohammad Ihsan, a cabinet minister in the regional government. "They have nothing to be scared of in the future because they are a majority.

"Sunnis are afraid of the future, but they had a great past ruling the country. We Kurds are the ones who are afraid of both the past and the future."

Infuriation

Kurdish fears drove their hard bargaining after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Their gains were considerable. But could the Kurds have been too successful?

Take Iraq's stalled oil law - when there was no agreement, the Kurds decided to go it alone.

The KRG has negotiated exploration contracts with international oil firms. That infuriated Iraq's central government.

"To be frank, the contracts that have been signed by the KRG have complicated the issue," said Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani in a recent BBC interview.

"They have not been public. They have not been competitive. They have not been transparent. No region can enter into contracts for the development of oil laws without the approval of the central authority."

Arab politicians are increasingly frustrated. Some Kurds believe that the resistance they are now facing in Baghdad is reminiscent of another era.

"There is an alarming rise in Arab chauvinism," said one senior Kurdish politician.

In the past few weeks there was a glimmer of hope when Iraqi politicians finally agreed on a new national flag.

The removal of the three stars on the previous Iraqi flag, which the Kurds said were linked to the Baath Party, have made the new design acceptable to them.

Now Muhammad Ibrahim, a tailor in Irbil, is making a batch of the new flags, which will fly in the city at a meeting of Arab parliamentarians next month.

Asked if he believes it will ever replace the flag of the Kurds, he replies with one word: "No".

Back at the teashop there are lots of pictures of the President of the Kurdistan Region, Massoud Barzani, but there are none of any of the recent Iraqi prime ministers. So does the owner Khalil respect the government in Baghdad?

"No," said Khalil. "We have a relationship with our prime minister here. Barzani's our leader now, we don't have anything to do with Baghdad."

PUKmedia :: English - Kurdistan: A State in the making?

ISX opens with 5 million share contract

The Iraqi Stock Exchange (ISX) opened its session on Tuesday with a 5 million share contract at a value of 1 Iraqi dinar (1 U.S. dollar =1,223 Iraqi dinars) per share.

The contract was concluded by an Iraqi company, which bought the shares from companies working under the Islamic Bank.

The Iraqi Stock Exchange holds three sessions a week: Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.

Aswat Aliraq

Sharp decline in the demand for dollar in daily auction

Demand for the dollar significantly dropped in the Iraqi Central Bank's auction on Tuesday, registering at $27.85 million compared to $153.620 million on Monday.

"The demand hit $10.265 million in cash and $16.820 million in money transfers outside the country, all covered by the bank at an exchange rate of 1,210 Iraqi dinars per dollar, unchanged for the fifth consecutive session," according to the central bank's daily bulletin which was received by Aswat al-Iraq- Voices of Iraq- (VOI).

The 11 banks that participated in the auction offered to sell $3 million, which the bank bought at an exchange rate of 1,208 dinars per dollar.

Speaking to VOI, Ali al-Yasseri, a trader, said that the bids for cash remained stable, while foreign transfers dropped sharply due to the absence of forward remittances.

The Iraqi Central Bank runs a daily auction from Sunday to Thursday.

Aswat Aliraq

Swedish organization to help with projects in Kurdistan

A Swedish organization called on the Contractors' Union in Iraq's Kurdistan region to provide it with the names of registered companies to help with the construction of projects in the province, a union member said on Tuesday.

"A Swedish company, Qandil, demanded a list of the companies' names and their fields of activities…and we have consented to their demand…," Azad Muhammad told Aswat al-Iraq, Voices of Iraq, (VOI).

Qandil is a Swedish charity organization that have been working in Kurdistan since 1991 in constructing schools and carrying out various projects.

The Contractors' Union is a non-governmental organization with branches all over Iraq's Kurdistan region.

Aswat Aliraq