Thread: Iraq/Dinar News. 09/05 to 01/14/07

Originally Posted by Alphamystic

I sure hope you're right. I'm starting to get bummed by some of this news coming out. I think the Iraqi Government has been on a thin line the last few months and that ***** with the cell camera doesn't realize the extent of damage he's done. All for a little pride and maybe some cash.

It will be interesting to see what the CBI does in the near future. Even though they are seperate from Parliament it would be very hard for the CBI to move forward when the Government is in chaos.

What would be the point of them moving forward if it seems like it'll be for nothing?

As we have said over and over, it is difficult for americans to understand just how independent the central bank is from the politicians. The CBI in iraq is set up the same way. What minor politicians are/are not doing does not effect monetary policy any more in Iraq than in the US. What a politician wants or does not want in this country never effected Alan Greenspan at all. The CBI is truly running its own program. Read their rules and regulations and compare them with the American Federal Reserve System. Its enlightening, they influence so much of our lives, yet are not under the control of the three branches of gov. in the US. Thank You.

Originally Posted by MrsCK

THEY ARRESTED THE DUDE WITH THE CAMERA.

CBI I believe will move forward as planned because of one group - KURDS!
Kurds are fed up with the bull and want their purchasing power back ASAP. So lets all do a HUGE FARM JIG that the Kurds get what they want.

OFF WITH HIS HEAD!!



Maliki did say he wanted to punish the man with the camera

Originally Posted by Par77

OFF WITH HIS HEAD!!



Maliki did say he wanted to punish the man with the camera

Guess he thought pictures at Abu Ghraib was only bad for Americans

Search for Holiday

(Voice of Iraq) - 04-01-2007
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04 / 01 / 2007-Basra Al-Qabas
He said to himself, which looks at a group of children. The children were chasing each other on the River Ashar energy and enthusiasm, and as a result no secret, carrying rifles and other weapons does not differ much from real weapons. Each of them striven to precede the other and overthrew by a bullet and illusory, but a voice real bullets after the little spits of fire mixed with gunpowder, emerge : that the country sink in the memory of death deeply and actively obstruct the hope that exist in his dreams after the fall of the former regime in that the curse of the three wars will leave all its terms with the departure of this system, and the children of Iraq Sinson, and for all, the roar of guns and bullets, Alan.

Seal spare reflections. , Intimidating, to the extent of terror, a group of children, a Tucker set out to the other of them had entered in the British foot patrol were combing the other side of the river. He placed his hand on his heart for fear that one imagines members of the patrol that British weapons carried by the children is real, opening fire on them. But breathe a sigh of relief, after seeing that the soldiers do not care about the slightest concern for children and their weapons. But some soldiers smiling, perhaps, feeling that children are also mastered the game of death.

Poetry some comfort. And still tension. And returned to the reminiscences associated chant with himself : 'In this the same place in which overlap children to their weapons delusional with the British soldiers to their weapons the provocative and three decades ago and no more, here were materialize the height of the Feast at Basra, in the arena separating the the cinema of-Hamra hibernation, and Basra-Saifi focused hundreds of wardrobes, hundreds of swings coming to an end, which, each one of which the Task are often from for better the hills CONTESTING on attracting children and youngsters Baikaathm the black warm, while chanting tirelessly :' Dolabena OBEODAT ', and not in the hands of children only Menadiham the colored new and toys affectionate environment, such as cars or effigy, in order to keep the enclaves cold and empty from temperature violated. Not Infedon those commemorating the anniversary of the arena only in the late hours of the night '.

It recalls how bother him at the time different people on the first day of Eid, where his friends go to the tires in time, which can not go is because the parents will be their day, the next day 'and this is no Eideh'.

Withdrawal from the plethora of memories flood of real bullets, which began pouring in a particular aspect of Ashar. It did not feel scared Tauda. He said, which pleased to himself, 'ساقتفي impact of the holidays at another location, regardless of the price'. , And headed east towards the Shatt al-Arab, did not discourage him from the sight of his intention streets almost free and voltage cold December, which began badly when approached from the beach road Street. And from time to time, meet one or two people. At stake is not a good one finds impact of the Eid in their faces. He said to himself, Mmtidha and wondering, 'Are we on the 10th day of Muharram?'.

Street arrived in the beach road. Here he is, the experience is still the favorite posture. Given the back of the boats and wind and gives the point of the people, poetry and pain. Kara, Petrtel, he saw what was written on the statue 'in my beautiful sun', but before the reading turned to the face of the experience as Ietbh and said 'What year has passed and Iraq is not hunger. The year has passed and Iraq, where there is no death '.

Expecting a little heated as the experience with something, and said 'death in the street. The hatred in the farms'. It has not been able to keep tears grains Kjamr on Cheeks Mazark to the capacity of the cold. Shouting Balsiab saying '. All that we love die. Did Iqdrk poetry to prophecy again, the great poet Abdulrahman? '.

Bade apology and sad. Secret and rushed to the beach road kill perhaps a manifestation of the feast. Street free. The seats scattered on the bank of the river is home to silence and the cold. Aging-bearing trees, which taught obtained in the long absence of revealing secrets millions of lovers and friends who sow Ashuakhm under the shadows, searching for the old days.
Memories in his memory pouring down like rain 'in the days of the holidays we can not get to the river bank because of the massive crowding. Albasserion All of them were rushing to the river as if they were performing a ritual and the ritual of their own, Vaidham have been incomplete if not plagued their lives thirds waves or welfare Dvich other. Poverty and destitution can not resist the desire of Chiropractic this'.

It does not feel Waif in the rough, he wrote his memoirs VIDEO who was directing, check, reference through a loudspeaker. Noticed the same 'as the British base where the headquarters of the British Consulate. The gate guards, which was the entrance to the presidential palaces of Saddam Hussein and that was the basis exclusively of Sheikh Khaz'al, had Prepare their weapons. Closing frightened urged sinners hurried. Khawrah arrived at the bridge. As he felt distanced itself enough from the consulate and the headquarters of Al Qaeda softened sinners and knocked out a cigarette smoked by claiming fondly. The carriages on the side of the river sells tea, which Itzi Vagrah word and the smell of tea Almhil that Cuba who drinks tea might emerge from the moment of horror experienced earlier. Approaching tea cart and asked, "Be careful going spoon in a glass of sugar to dissolve that the cart has been placed in a small strip registration sprinkled lamentations and punching and scars on the front of the little time he could not to know who is. Fully convinced that the holidays Basra has been abandoned for a long time, and he has to eat what is left of the reminiscences associated. Aktri first taxi encountered in the way and returned to his home, Machochba distress.

Maliki : impossible to accept the mandate of the 2nd

(Voice of Iraq) - 04-01-2007
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04 / 01 / 2007, Baghdad, Ramadi, Mosul, and Washington-Reuters-Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki recently that he had no desire to form another government after the expiration of the current mandate. He also expressed his desire to leave office before the end of his term, which is where sectarian violence excessive challenge to the hopes of achieving national unity.

This came in an interview in his newspaper Al-Maliki 'Wall Street Journal' published last Tuesday. When asked about the most difficult decisions that have faced during the seven months he spent in assuming the presidency of the government-Maliki said that 'every decision has been difficult', noting in particular the decision to accept office.

Al-Maliki said in the interview, which took place on December 24 last (ie, a week ago the execution of the deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, an event that increased sectarian tensions) in response to a question whether he would accept a second term saying 'impossible'. He added, 'I wish they would end up before the end of this period. I want to serve the people outside the circle of senior officials and possibly through the parliament or by working directly with the people '.

He added, 'I did not wish to take up this position. The only because I thought it would serve the national interest and will not accept it again '. He said that his term of office is four years of assessments but may be reduced by changing the system of power in Parliament.

Al-Maliki also criticized the multinational forces led by the United States and the Iraqi army because of the very slow response to the gunmen.
He said 'What is happening in Iraq is a guerrilla war and the war on terrorism. There is therefore a need to be very strongly and swift action ', stressing that the Iraqi leaders need more power on the face of the insurgency.
He added, 'the way in which the Iraqi army and multinational forces far too slow in the decision to move. This gives terrorists the opportunity to attack and escape '.

The assassination of Sheikh 'Bani Tamim'
The field, unidentified gunmen kidnapped Sheikh tribe Bani Tamim bin Hamed Mohammed Suhail al-Tamimi (75 years old) in the consolation Aqarquf (west of Baghdad) and taken to a place and threw him on the roof of one building to be killed instantly.

On the other hand, American forces arrested 'leading role in the death squads of the Abu Shield' responsible for the acts of violence, killing and kidnapping, and that through a series of raids carried out by American forces in Baghdad and Ramadi (west Iraq) also resulted in the arrest of 23 other people suspected of being linked to senior leaders of Al-Qaeda.

In a statement that the American soldiers fired at one detainee was shot and wounded after he tried to escape and possession of a firearm and fired.
In a separate development, American army said that one of its soldiers was killed when a bomb planted on the road near his patrol south of Baghdad last Sunday.

For their part, Iraqi police announced that armed men had attacked a house and killed six members of a Shiite family Tuesday night in the town of Yathrib (80 km north of Baghdad). In Hilla, (100 km south of Baghdad) gunmen killed two of the former officials of the Baath party disbanded.

In addition, police found the body of a man killed by a bullet wound and the effects of torture in Kirkuk (250 km north of Baghdad). Also found six more bodies near Mosul (north).
Kuwaiti Al-Qabas

Daily Times - 1 hour ago

Bush promises new Iraq policy in the coming days

WASHINGTON: US President George W Bush promised on Wednesday to unveil a new Iraq policy within days amid signs that even members of his own Republican party oppose escalating the unpopular war.

The president has previously said he is considering “all options”, including a temporary increase of US troops in Iraq. Winning the war in Iraq and making tax cuts passed by the Republican-controlled Congress in 2001 permanent – both issues that have roiled Democrats – are Bush’s top priorities, he wrote in a column in Wednesday’s Wall Street Journal.

Writing on the eve of the Democratic takeover of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, Bush warned that partisanship could lead to a “stalemate”. “In the days ahead, I will be addressing our nation about a new strategy to help the Iraqi people gain control of the security situation and hasten the day when the Iraqi government gains full control over its affairs,” he wrote. “Ultimately, Iraqis must resolve the most pressing issues facing them. We can’t do it for them. But we can help Iraq defeat the extremists inside and outside of Iraq – and we can help provide the necessary breathing space for this young government to meet its responsibilities.”

If democracy fails “and the extremists prevail in Iraq, then America’s enemies will be stronger, more lethal, and emboldened by our defeat.

“Leaders in both parties understand the stakes in this struggle. We now have the opportunity to build a bipartisan consensus to fight and win the war,” he wrote.

But to reach these common goals, he warned, “we can’t play politics as usual.” “If the Congress chooses to pass bills that are simply political statements, they will have chosen stalemate,” Bush wrote. “If a different approach is taken, the next two years can be fruitful ones for our nation.”

Separately, the number of Iraqi civilians killed in political violence hit a record high in December, according to figures compiled by Iraq’s Interior Ministry.

The Interior Ministry data, almost certain to be an underestimate, showed 12,320 civilians were killed in 2006 in what officials term “terrorist” violence. There has been no significant repeat of a series of car bombings that killed more than 70 people in Shia neighbourhoods on Saturday within hours of the dawn execution of former president Saddam Hussein.

Military Times, a private US newspaper widely read by the armed forces, published the results of a survey mailed to subscribers that found just 35 percent of active-duty personnel approved of Bush’s handling of Iraq and 42 percent disapproved.

Meanwhile, US forces conducted a string of raids in Ramadi, the capital of Iraq’s restive western province of Anbar, on Wednesday, and detained 23 suspects with ties to senior Al Qaeda leaders, the US military said. One of those detained was shot and wounded after he tried to escape with a handgun and a grenade, a US statement said.

A US Marine killed an Iraqi soldier during what the US military described on Tuesday as an “altercation” at a security post in Falluja. A US statement did not say what sparked the fight, which occurred on Saturday, or how the Iraqi soldier was killed. The Marine has been assigned to administrative duties, it said.

US troops killed six “terrorists” when they came under attack early on Monday from a building owned by a senior Sunni lawmaker in Iraq, the US military said. The soldiers came under fire as they approached a suspected hideout of the Al Qaeda in Iraq, the US military said in a statement. agencies

They better revalue the dinar if they plan on buying this much U.S. military armor.....it don't come cheap at any rate!!!

U.S. military sees Iraq control, purchases in 2007
Reuters
Wednesday, January 3, 2007; 12:00 PM

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. commanders in Iraq expect to have handed over full control of the country's security and armed forces to the Iraqi authorities by the end of this year, a U.S. general said on Wednesday.

Major General William Caldwell, a spokesman, also told a news conference that Iraq's military and police planned to buy hundreds of armoured vehicles, as well as helicopters, under a $150 million agreement signed last month with the United States.

Describing 2007 as the "Year of Transition," Caldwell said that by summer all 11 Iraqi army divisions to have been formed by that time would be directly under the command of the Iraqi government and by autumn all of Iraq's 18 provincial governors would be in charge of security in their regions.

"By the end of this year, the dynamics will be entirely different," he said.

The timetable he sketched out is longer than one Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki forecast after he took office eight months ago, when he said Iraqi control of the divisions and provinces could be complete by the spring or summer.

However, it is in line with remarks in recent months by General George Casey, the U.S. commander in Iraq, about when he believes Iraqi forces will be able to cope largely without U.S. help.

Caldwell said the United States would continue to provide logistical and intelligence support, as well as work to ensure the "loyalty" of some units of the Iraqi forces -- many in Saddam Hussein's once dominant Sunni Arab minority accuse some of being loyal not to the government but to sectarian Shi'ite militias.

"Iraq's security forces must not only continue to improve their capabilities but must also work to gain the confidence of all Iraqi people," Caldwell said.

He urged the Shi'ite-led government to make "hard compromises" for national reconciliation and to reach out to Sunnis after Saddam's televised hanging angered many Sunnis.

Caldwell said that Iraq planned to buy 300 armored personnel carriers, 600 heavily armored Humvee patrol vehicles and a number of UH-2 Huey helicopters as part of a $150 million foreign military sales agreement with Washington.

He declined comment on speculation that President George W. Bush may announce a temporary increase in the number of U.S. troops in Iraq as part of a new strategy to try to arrest a slide toward all-out sectarian civil war.

This is an old press release from 2003 but notice it mentions the gold reserves.

FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

June 4, 2003
js-452
Reconstruction in Iraq: Economic and Financial Issues
John B. Taylor
Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs

Chairman Lugar, Ranking Member Biden, and other members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify on the reconstruction of Iraq. I will discuss economic and financial issues, focusing on accomplishments since the end of major military operations and on our plans for the future.

The international community and the Iraqi people face an enormous task in the reconstruction of the Iraqi economy. A quarter century of repression and economic mismanagement under Saddam Hussein cut the size of the economy to only a small fraction of what it was before his regime took over. In 1979, GDP in Iraq was $128 billion in PPP (purchasing power parity) terms; by 2001, it had declined to about $40 billion. And income per capita has plummeted, impoverishing the Iraqi people. While the world economy expanded, the Iraqi economy shrunk. As a consequence, the Iraqi people fell way behind, from a rank of 76 in 1990 to a rank of 127 in 2001 on the UN Human Development Index.

While the reconstruction task is significant, the opportunities are great. Simply restoring the economy to what it was before Saddam will be a tremendous improvement in the well being of the Iraq people. Establishing a market economy based on clear property rights, a sound rule of law, and economic freedom will unleash a long tradition of entrepreneurship and build on the abundant human potential and natural resources of Iraq. I am confident that if these resources are used effectively, economic growth will soon be above, rather than well below, the world average.

Though there is much to do, I believe that we have already achieved important successes since the end of the major military operations, especially in the economic and financial areas. Over 1.5 million workers and pensioners have received salaries and emergency payments. Our financial experts in Baghdad report that Iraqis and other observers consider this act alone as a turning point in the mood of the city for many. These payments have enabled Iraqis to return to work to run the railroads, teach school children, or help in the payment of other

There are other successes. Since March 20, $1.7 billion of Saddam’s assets have been vested; $1.2 billion have been frozen; and $0.9 billion in cash has been found in Iraq. Working with the international community, we have removed sanctions on the selling of Iraqi oil and we have agreed that the international financial institutions should provide needs assessments and technical assistance. Later this month in New York we will convene the first meeting of donors. I will provide more details on these and other accomplishments later in my testimony.
We have also achieved successes in avoiding catastrophic events that could have occurred; we were concerned about such events and took actions to prevent them. Instead of collapsing as many had feared, the Iraqi currency has recovered from its low levels at the start of the war. Hyperinflation has been avoided. Oil fields have been saved from destruction. There has been no humanitarian crisis. And the crippling burden of debt service payments has been lifted through the end of 2004 so that Iraq can focus on reconstruction needs.

These successes are due to the work of experienced and dedicated people and to the contingency plans laid out months in advance of the war. We began selecting members for our team of Treasury advisors back in January; the first wave was deployed to Kuwait in March and arrived in Baghdad in April. We have since sent over a dozen additional advisors with expertise in areas ranging from budgets, to payments systems, to monetary policy. Peter McPherson—former USAID Administrator and former Deputy Treasury Secretary—now serves as financial coordinator and adviser to Ambassador Bremer on economic and financial issues. He and his team have responsibility for working with Iraqis to get the Central Bank, the Finance Ministry, commercial banks and other financial institutions up and running. Their very first task on the ground was to assess conditions and evaluate the basic economic infrastructure, including the payments system. The work they are doing is similar to some of the tasks that we undertook in Afghanistan; indeed, while Treasury’s work continues in Afghanistan, some of the same people who worked there have brought their experience to Iraq. I am in nearly constant contact with them through telephone and email, providing support and advice with the help of our Iraq Financial Task Force, Office of Technical Assistance, and others stationed here in Washington.

A Plan to Pay Workers and Pensioners

A top reconstruction priority from the start was to make emergency and salary payments to government workers and pensioners. Starting late last year we developed a contingency plan for such payments. The plan called for paying workers and pensioners in U.S. dollars on an interim basis. Making payments in dollars on an interim basis was not an attempt to dollarize the economy. On the contrary, the plan called for the continued use of dinars as an acceptable means of payment. Using dollars on an interim basis would create stability immediately after the war, as the dollar is a stable medium of exchange and a good store of value. By making sure that the spending on salaries was matched by the revenues available, the dollar payment plan also was a way to prevent inflationary financing.

To make this payment plan operational, financial resources were required. Hence, the first step in the plan was to vest the Iraqi regime assets that were frozen in the United States over a decade ago. The plan also required some functioning payroll system, so a high priority of our first wave of people on the ground was to assess the state of this system.

This plan is basically on track and has been successful thus far.

On March 20, President Bush vested $1.7 billion of assets and placed them in an account at the New York Fed to be used to support reconstruction. Treasury representatives, in close cooperation with the New York Fed and the Department of Defense, arranged the delivery of $199 million of these vested assets in three shipments from a storage facility in New Jersey to Andrews Air Force Base, where the currency was loaded on a transport and flown to the region. A fourth shipment of $358 million will be made shortly.

A mechanism for making emergency payments was quickly established on the ground, so that payments could commence for dock workers, rail workers, power plant workers, and others. At the same time, upon arriving in Iraq, our advisors conducted an assessment of the existing payroll system for salaries and pensions and found that adequate, functional procedures already existed. While this system will have to be updated over time, it provides the basic infrastructure for making salary and pension payments.

Despite tremendous logistical challenges, the system of payments has been a success. To date, over 1.5 million pensioners, civil servants, and workers crucial to the functioning of essential public services have received payments. Our advisors have played a key role, working closely with counterparts from the Defense Department and other agencies, in extending this initial financial life-line to the Iraqi people.

Establishing a Stable Currency

One of the most important objectives in the near-term is to promote the establishment of a stable, unified national currency. A currency that has the full faith and confidence of the Iraqi people, and which can be used as a store of value, is a prerequisite for establishing a vibrant economy.

The pre-existing currency situation in Iraq makes this a complex and difficult task. Iraq has not had a stable currency for some time; several currencies circulate widely in Iraq, including the Iraqi (or “Saddam”) dinar in central and southern Iraq, the Old Iraqi (or “Swiss”) dinar in the northern part of the country, and the U.S. dollar. The Saddam dinar has fallen dramatically in value over the past dozen years due to the policies of the Saddam Hussein regime. One dollar used to purchase only a third of a Saddam dinar under the official exchange rate; now, it will purchase about 1,200 dinars in the market.

One of our primary concerns was that the conflict and its aftermath would result in a massive depreciation of the Saddam dinar and hyperinflation. There were concerns about losing control over large warehouses of Saddam dinar notes and currency printing facilities.

And with the fall of the regime, there was the risk that the currency would cease to serve as an accepted means of exchange.

For these reasons, early action was taken to secure currency stocks and currency-printing facilities and stop the printing of the Saddam dinar. The military made public announcements that existing currencies in Iraq would continue to be accepted as means of payment. These measures helped stabilize the Saddam dinar and avert a monetary crisis. In fact, the Saddam dinar has actually strengthened in recent weeks—from a low of about 5,000 dinars per U.S. dollar during the conflict to approximately 1,200 per dollar today.

This achievement notwithstanding, a stable, unified currency system is essential for Iraq’s long-run economic prospects. Several options exist for currency reform, including the introduction of a new currency or the replacement of Saddam dinars with Old Iraqi dinars. We stand ready to assist in the implementation of whichever option the people of Iraq choose through a representative, elected Iraqi government.

Development of an Iraqi Budget

Prior to the war, no Iraqi government budget was published. The lack of transparency and accountability in fiscal operations made it difficult to determine how resources were allocated or how revenues were raised.

Development of an integrated and transparent Iraqi government budget is necessary for ensuring that essential government services and reconstruction needs can be financed without resorting to printing money. Our advisors are working with personnel within the Ministry of Finance to develop an interim budget and to implement a centralized treasury mechanism for government spending. In addition, several Treasury advisors with expertise in tax systems will be working with Iraqi officials to revise the tax code and build the capacity of revenue agencies.

Initially, budgetary resources will derive primarily from returned Iraqi assets, oil sales, and donor contributions.

With the initiation of military action, the United States and its coalition partners acted to secure the Saddam Hussein regime’s assets for the benefit of the Iraqi people. In addition to the rapid vesting of $1.7 billion of assets in the United States, we have spearheaded bilateral efforts that have led to the identification and freezing of about $1.2 billion of Iraqi assets outside of the United States since the beginning of the war. We are working with these countries to return them to the Iraqi people, as required by UNSCR 1483. The United States has deployed financial investigation teams to Iraq and other foreign jurisdictions to identify and recover additional Iraqi assets.

Efforts have also been made to secure assets inside of Iraq. Since the end of the conflict, approximately $900 million in currency has been found in various locations, in addition to $350 million of currency and gold discovered in vaults at the Central Bank of Iraq.
All of the vested assets in the United States, as well as the assets found in Iraq, will be used to assist the Iraqi people and support the reconstruction of Iraq.

Proceeds from the sale of Iraqi oil will be another critical source of funds. The Security Council resolution introduced by the U.S., Spain and the UK and approved unanimously last month provides immunity from attachment for Iraq’s oil and proceeds from its sale through 2007. Oil revenues will be deposited in the Development Fund for Iraq, an account of the Central Bank of Iraq. The Coalition Provisional Authority now is working on the development of regulations to ensure transparency and accountability in the use and administration of oil proceeds and other revenues that will be deposited in the Development Fund for Iraq.

An important part of this effort will be the establishment of the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, which will be responsible for approving the auditors of the Development Fund for Iraq and reviewing their findings. Representatives from four international organizations—the IMF, the World Bank, the United Nations, and the Arab Fund for Social and Economic Development—will participate on this board. On May 24, Ambassador Bremer sent letters to the four organizations to initiate the process of constituting the board; I will chair a meeting later this month to finalize the terms of reference.

Role of the International Financial Institutions

Donor contributions will also play an important role in the reconstruction of Iraq. Active participation by the international financial institutions is important to mobilizing this international support.

I am pleased to report that the international financial institutions are intensifying their support for the process of reconstruction and recovery in Iraq. IMF and World Bank officials are traveling with the delegation of Sergio Vieira de Mello, the U.N. special representative for Iraq, on his trip to Iraq this week. In addition, IMF Managing Director Horst Köhler announced last week that he was prepared to send out a team to Baghdad for a fact-finding mission as early as this weekend. This team will work with the Coalition Provisional Authority and Iraqi officials to identify priority needs related to budget planning and execution, central bank functions, payments systems and banking sector reform, as well as the social safety net.

Later this month, the United Nations Development Program and the World Bank will co-host a donor meeting in New York to launch a coordinated, international effort to support Iraq’s reconstruction needs and lay the groundwork for a donor conference in late summer after the World Bank has completed its needs assessment of Iraq.

Reforming the Banking Sector

Strengthening and modernizing the banking sector is central to achieving overall economic progress in Iraq. We are still in the early stages of assessing the banking system. We know, however, that Iraqi banks were oriented much more toward the fulfillment of Ba’athist political objectives than toward financial intermediation and other economic services that one normally associates with banks. Essentially, Iraqi banks were vehicles for storing and moving cash around the country, and in some cases outside the country.

Our overarching objective in this area is to help Iraq restore its banking sector and ensure that it begins to function in a commercially viable way. We want Iraq’s banking sector to be a vehicle for sound economic growth, to meet the needs of the Iraqi people, and to reflect regional as well as international best practices. For example, we endorse the objective of Iraqis having access to financial products and services that are based on Islamic principles.

Creating a sound supervisory and regulatory regime is a critical step to establishing a sound financial system. We are working with the Iraqis to help them bring this about. To this end, we will be working with governments in the region that have strong systems and have offered technical assistance for the banking sector.

Iraq’s Foreign Debt

An issue that has garnered much attention and will clearly have to be addressed is Iraq’s capacity to address the potentially enormous burden of its existing financial obligations. Estimates of Iraqi external debt range from $60 billion to $130 billion. Whatever the precise level, Iraq’s external obligations are significant and must be addressed in a comprehensive manner.

In the near-term, we have taken two important steps put to address this situation. First and foremost, we have worked with our G-8 partners to provide Iraq with some breathing room. We achieved agreement that given Iraq’s precarious financial situation, creditors should not expect Iraq to make any payments on its debt for at least the next eighteen months. Secondly, we have put a lot of people to work on what could be described as data forensics. On the creditor side of the ledger, we proposed at the last meeting of the Paris Club, and creditor governments agreed, to report the amount of debt they are currently owed. We have also approached the IMF for its assistance in determining the amount of debt owed to non-Paris Club governments. To address the other side of the ledger, we have placed Treasury advisors in Baghdad to go through Iraqi government debt records.

In the medium-term, once we have a better estimate of the true level of Iraq’s debt, we can move forward to develop a comprehensive strategy to deal with Iraq’s official debt. To supplement these efforts, we are providing a Treasury advisor to work with Iraqi officials to develop a notional strategy for external debt treatment.

Conclusion

Achieving our economic objectives in Iraq is central to achieving our ultimate goal of a stable, unified, and prosperous Iraq—one which provides opportunities for all Iraqis to forge a better future for themselves and their children. The challenges are formidable. We have a tough job ahead. Our achievements to date can be attributed to careful planning, vigilance to potential problems, and early action by dedicated and talented professionals to prepare for them. We will bring the same spirit to our work in the coming months.

Originally Posted by CharmedPiper

This is an old press release from 2003 but notice it mentions the gold reserves.

FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

June 4, 2003
js-452
Reconstruction in Iraq: Economic and Financial Issues
John B. Taylor
Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs

Chairman Lugar, Ranking Member Biden, and other members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify on the reconstruction of Iraq. I will discuss economic and financial issues, focusing on accomplishments since the end of major military operations and on our plans for the future.

The international community and the Iraqi people face an enormous task in the reconstruction of the Iraqi economy. A quarter century of repression and economic mismanagement under Saddam Hussein cut the size of the economy to only a small fraction of what it was before his regime took over. In 1979, GDP in Iraq was $128 billion in PPP (purchasing power parity) terms; by 2001, it had declined to about $40 billion. And income per capita has plummeted, impoverishing the Iraqi people. While the world economy expanded, the Iraqi economy shrunk. As a consequence, the Iraqi people fell way behind, from a rank of 76 in 1990 to a rank of 127 in 2001 on the UN Human Development Index.

While the reconstruction task is significant, the opportunities are great. Simply restoring the economy to what it was before Saddam will be a tremendous improvement in the well being of the Iraq people. Establishing a market economy based on clear property rights, a sound rule of law, and economic freedom will unleash a long tradition of entrepreneurship and build on the abundant human potential and natural resources of Iraq. I am confident that if these resources are used effectively, economic growth will soon be above, rather than well below, the world average.

Though there is much to do, I believe that we have already achieved important successes since the end of the major military operations, especially in the economic and financial areas. Over 1.5 million workers and pensioners have received salaries and emergency payments. Our financial experts in Baghdad report that Iraqis and other observers consider this act alone as a turning point in the mood of the city for many. These payments have enabled Iraqis to return to work to run the railroads, teach school children, or help in the payment of other

There are other successes. Since March 20, $1.7 billion of Saddam’s assets have been vested; $1.2 billion have been frozen; and $0.9 billion in cash has been found in Iraq. Working with the international community, we have removed sanctions on the selling of Iraqi oil and we have agreed that the international financial institutions should provide needs assessments and technical assistance. Later this month in New York we will convene the first meeting of donors. I will provide more details on these and other accomplishments later in my testimony.
We have also achieved successes in avoiding catastrophic events that could have occurred; we were concerned about such events and took actions to prevent them. Instead of collapsing as many had feared, the Iraqi currency has recovered from its low levels at the start of the war. Hyperinflation has been avoided. Oil fields have been saved from destruction. There has been no humanitarian crisis. And the crippling burden of debt service payments has been lifted through the end of 2004 so that Iraq can focus on reconstruction needs.

These successes are due to the work of experienced and dedicated people and to the contingency plans laid out months in advance of the war. We began selecting members for our team of Treasury advisors back in January; the first wave was deployed to Kuwait in March and arrived in Baghdad in April. We have since sent over a dozen additional advisors with expertise in areas ranging from budgets, to payments systems, to monetary policy. Peter McPherson—former USAID Administrator and former Deputy Treasury Secretary—now serves as financial coordinator and adviser to Ambassador Bremer on economic and financial issues. He and his team have responsibility for working with Iraqis to get the Central Bank, the Finance Ministry, commercial banks and other financial institutions up and running. Their very first task on the ground was to assess conditions and evaluate the basic economic infrastructure, including the payments system. The work they are doing is similar to some of the tasks that we undertook in Afghanistan; indeed, while Treasury’s work continues in Afghanistan, some of the same people who worked there have brought their experience to Iraq. I am in nearly constant contact with them through telephone and email, providing support and advice with the help of our Iraq Financial Task Force, Office of Technical Assistance, and others stationed here in Washington.

A Plan to Pay Workers and Pensioners

A top reconstruction priority from the start was to make emergency and salary payments to government workers and pensioners. Starting late last year we developed a contingency plan for such payments. The plan called for paying workers and pensioners in U.S. dollars on an interim basis. Making payments in dollars on an interim basis was not an attempt to dollarize the economy. On the contrary, the plan called for the continued use of dinars as an acceptable means of payment. Using dollars on an interim basis would create stability immediately after the war, as the dollar is a stable medium of exchange and a good store of value. By making sure that the spending on salaries was matched by the revenues available, the dollar payment plan also was a way to prevent inflationary financing.

To make this payment plan operational, financial resources were required. Hence, the first step in the plan was to vest the Iraqi regime assets that were frozen in the United States over a decade ago. The plan also required some functioning payroll system, so a high priority of our first wave of people on the ground was to assess the state of this system.

This plan is basically on track and has been successful thus far.

On March 20, President Bush vested $1.7 billion of assets and placed them in an account at the New York Fed to be used to support reconstruction. Treasury representatives, in close cooperation with the New York Fed and the Department of Defense, arranged the delivery of $199 million of these vested assets in three shipments from a storage facility in New Jersey to Andrews Air Force Base, where the currency was loaded on a transport and flown to the region. A fourth shipment of $358 million will be made shortly.

A mechanism for making emergency payments was quickly established on the ground, so that payments could commence for dock workers, rail workers, power plant workers, and others. At the same time, upon arriving in Iraq, our advisors conducted an assessment of the existing payroll system for salaries and pensions and found that adequate, functional procedures already existed. While this system will have to be updated over time, it provides the basic infrastructure for making salary and pension payments.

Despite tremendous logistical challenges, the system of payments has been a success. To date, over 1.5 million pensioners, civil servants, and workers crucial to the functioning of essential public services have received payments. Our advisors have played a key role, working closely with counterparts from the Defense Department and other agencies, in extending this initial financial life-line to the Iraqi people.

Establishing a Stable Currency

One of the most important objectives in the near-term is to promote the establishment of a stable, unified national currency. A currency that has the full faith and confidence of the Iraqi people, and which can be used as a store of value, is a prerequisite for establishing a vibrant economy.

The pre-existing currency situation in Iraq makes this a complex and difficult task. Iraq has not had a stable currency for some time; several currencies circulate widely in Iraq, including the Iraqi (or “Saddam”) dinar in central and southern Iraq, the Old Iraqi (or “Swiss”) dinar in the northern part of the country, and the U.S. dollar. The Saddam dinar has fallen dramatically in value over the past dozen years due to the policies of the Saddam Hussein regime. One dollar used to purchase only a third of a Saddam dinar under the official exchange rate; now, it will purchase about 1,200 dinars in the market.

One of our primary concerns was that the conflict and its aftermath would result in a massive depreciation of the Saddam dinar and hyperinflation. There were concerns about losing control over large warehouses of Saddam dinar notes and currency printing facilities.

And with the fall of the regime, there was the risk that the currency would cease to serve as an accepted means of exchange.

For these reasons, early action was taken to secure currency stocks and currency-printing facilities and stop the printing of the Saddam dinar. The military made public announcements that existing currencies in Iraq would continue to be accepted as means of payment. These measures helped stabilize the Saddam dinar and avert a monetary crisis. In fact, the Saddam dinar has actually strengthened in recent weeks—from a low of about 5,000 dinars per U.S. dollar during the conflict to approximately 1,200 per dollar today.

This achievement notwithstanding, a stable, unified currency system is essential for Iraq’s long-run economic prospects. Several options exist for currency reform, including the introduction of a new currency or the replacement of Saddam dinars with Old Iraqi dinars. We stand ready to assist in the implementation of whichever option the people of Iraq choose through a representative, elected Iraqi government.

Development of an Iraqi Budget

Prior to the war, no Iraqi government budget was published. The lack of transparency and accountability in fiscal operations made it difficult to determine how resources were allocated or how revenues were raised.

Development of an integrated and transparent Iraqi government budget is necessary for ensuring that essential government services and reconstruction needs can be financed without resorting to printing money. Our advisors are working with personnel within the Ministry of Finance to develop an interim budget and to implement a centralized treasury mechanism for government spending. In addition, several Treasury advisors with expertise in tax systems will be working with Iraqi officials to revise the tax code and build the capacity of revenue agencies.

Initially, budgetary resources will derive primarily from returned Iraqi assets, oil sales, and donor contributions.

With the initiation of military action, the United States and its coalition partners acted to secure the Saddam Hussein regime’s assets for the benefit of the Iraqi people. In addition to the rapid vesting of $1.7 billion of assets in the United States, we have spearheaded bilateral efforts that have led to the identification and freezing of about $1.2 billion of Iraqi assets outside of the United States since the beginning of the war. We are working with these countries to return them to the Iraqi people, as required by UNSCR 1483. The United States has deployed financial investigation teams to Iraq and other foreign jurisdictions to identify and recover additional Iraqi assets.

Efforts have also been made to secure assets inside of Iraq. Since the end of the conflict, approximately $900 million in currency has been found in various locations, in addition to $350 million of currency and gold discovered in vaults at the Central Bank of Iraq.
All of the vested assets in the United States, as well as the assets found in Iraq, will be used to assist the Iraqi people and support the reconstruction of Iraq.

Proceeds from the sale of Iraqi oil will be another critical source of funds. The Security Council resolution introduced by the U.S., Spain and the UK and approved unanimously last month provides immunity from attachment for Iraq’s oil and proceeds from its sale through 2007. Oil revenues will be deposited in the Development Fund for Iraq, an account of the Central Bank of Iraq. The Coalition Provisional Authority now is working on the development of regulations to ensure transparency and accountability in the use and administration of oil proceeds and other revenues that will be deposited in the Development Fund for Iraq.

An important part of this effort will be the establishment of the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, which will be responsible for approving the auditors of the Development Fund for Iraq and reviewing their findings. Representatives from four international organizations—the IMF, the World Bank, the United Nations, and the Arab Fund for Social and Economic Development—will participate on this board. On May 24, Ambassador Bremer sent letters to the four organizations to initiate the process of constituting the board; I will chair a meeting later this month to finalize the terms of reference.

Role of the International Financial Institutions

Donor contributions will also play an important role in the reconstruction of Iraq. Active participation by the international financial institutions is important to mobilizing this international support.

I am pleased to report that the international financial institutions are intensifying their support for the process of reconstruction and recovery in Iraq. IMF and World Bank officials are traveling with the delegation of Sergio Vieira de Mello, the U.N. special representative for Iraq, on his trip to Iraq this week. In addition, IMF Managing Director Horst Köhler announced last week that he was prepared to send out a team to Baghdad for a fact-finding mission as early as this weekend. This team will work with the Coalition Provisional Authority and Iraqi officials to identify priority needs related to budget planning and execution, central bank functions, payments systems and banking sector reform, as well as the social safety net.

Later this month, the United Nations Development Program and the World Bank will co-host a donor meeting in New York to launch a coordinated, international effort to support Iraq’s reconstruction needs and lay the groundwork for a donor conference in late summer after the World Bank has completed its needs assessment of Iraq.

Reforming the Banking Sector

Strengthening and modernizing the banking sector is central to achieving overall economic progress in Iraq. We are still in the early stages of assessing the banking system. We know, however, that Iraqi banks were oriented much more toward the fulfillment of Ba’athist political objectives than toward financial intermediation and other economic services that one normally associates with banks. Essentially, Iraqi banks were vehicles for storing and moving cash around the country, and in some cases outside the country.

Our overarching objective in this area is to help Iraq restore its banking sector and ensure that it begins to function in a commercially viable way. We want Iraq’s banking sector to be a vehicle for sound economic growth, to meet the needs of the Iraqi people, and to reflect regional as well as international best practices. For example, we endorse the objective of Iraqis having access to financial products and services that are based on Islamic principles.

Creating a sound supervisory and regulatory regime is a critical step to establishing a sound financial system. We are working with the Iraqis to help them bring this about. To this end, we will be working with governments in the region that have strong systems and have offered technical assistance for the banking sector.

Iraq’s Foreign Debt

An issue that has garnered much attention and will clearly have to be addressed is Iraq’s capacity to address the potentially enormous burden of its existing financial obligations. Estimates of Iraqi external debt range from $60 billion to $130 billion. Whatever the precise level, Iraq’s external obligations are significant and must be addressed in a comprehensive manner.

In the near-term, we have taken two important steps put to address this situation. First and foremost, we have worked with our G-8 partners to provide Iraq with some breathing room. We achieved agreement that given Iraq’s precarious financial situation, creditors should not expect Iraq to make any payments on its debt for at least the next eighteen months. Secondly, we have put a lot of people to work on what could be described as data forensics. On the creditor side of the ledger, we proposed at the last meeting of the Paris Club, and creditor governments agreed, to report the amount of debt they are currently owed. We have also approached the IMF for its assistance in determining the amount of debt owed to non-Paris Club governments. To address the other side of the ledger, we have placed Treasury advisors in Baghdad to go through Iraqi government debt records.

In the medium-term, once we have a better estimate of the true level of Iraq’s debt, we can move forward to develop a comprehensive strategy to deal with Iraq’s official debt. To supplement these efforts, we are providing a Treasury advisor to work with Iraqi officials to develop a notional strategy for external debt treatment.

Conclusion

Achieving our economic objectives in Iraq is central to achieving our ultimate goal of a stable, unified, and prosperous Iraq—one which provides opportunities for all Iraqis to forge a better future for themselves and their children. The challenges are formidable. We have a tough job ahead. Our achievements to date can be attributed to careful planning, vigilance to potential problems, and early action by dedicated and talented professionals to prepare for them. We will bring the same spirit to our work in the coming months.

Great article Charmed. Thats what Im talking about. The so called missing links, or other avenues to support a reval with other than oil. Sweet !!!! One big fat reval is a coming people. I feel it in my bones !!!!!!!! Either that or Im starting to defrost from all this cold Canadian winter. LOL

Gloribee

International conference on Kurdish Women for peace and equality


Wednesday, January 03, 2007

KurdishMedia.com

The Kurdish National Congress of North America: This conference will be dedicated to the memory of the late Mrs. Soraya Serajeddini Previous Executive Vice President of the Kurdish National Congress

Date: March 8th & 11th, 2007 (International Women’s Day)

Place: Southern Kurdistan, Hawler and Sulaimany

The Kurdish National Congress of North America will hold a conference on Kurdish Women in Greater Kurdistan (Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria) and in the Diaspora.

The conference will be held in Southern Kurdistan and will be focusing on the role of Kurdish women in politics, science, art, and history inside Kurdistan and in Diaspora as well as marginal participation of women in politics. Kurdish Women compose half of the citizens in Kurdish society. Opportunities for women to be represented in political bodies and to have influence in political matters are important yardsticks of democracy and thus an integral indication of social development and democratization processes in the region. Increasing the active participation of women in politics and the representation of women in positions of power remains a crucial and critical step towards obtaining gender balance in Kurdish society. At the same time it is important to examine the "gender" of politics, science, art, and the implications of gender in the political, scientific and artistic aspects of life in Kurdistan. KNC holds the position that true peace, referred to in the peace studies literature as “positive peace” is only possible under conditions of just and fair gender relations, respect for democratic rights and freedoms, and equal opportunities for economic, social and intellectual development across age, class, ethnicity and gender.

The conference will address both quantitative and qualitative aspects of Kurdish women’s role in politics, science and art. Studies on women and politics have suggested a variety of possible explanations for the paucity of women leaders and the marginalization of women in politics. These include electoral systems, party systems, gender-role socialization, women's movement, political culture, religion, and women's representation among professions from which potential leaders are drawn. The conference looks at both obstacles/constraints to progress and the emerging practices/strategies leading to progress, and encourages both structurally oriented and actor-oriented explanations for either the lack or the increase of women in political bodies, sciences and art in different cultural, political and developmental contexts across Kurdistan.

As for the qualitative aspect of Kurdish women and politics, science, art, and history the conference will address issues concerning gender and power relations. The conference will look into alternatives or informal channels of participation, Kurdish women's exercise of power through these channels, and Kurdish women's role in influencing political, science and art agendas. Moreover, the conference will address the impact of diverse political discourses and religious systems on shaping the status quo. It will examine what political options these discourses provide for women and how women maneuver within or across different political discourses.

The conference will look into establishing channels of cooperation between women organizations in Northern America, Europe and Kurdistan for the purpose of advancing and enhancing women role in building the new civil society in Kurdistan and democracy.