Iraq’s President Sues PM Sudani Over Budget

On February 9 Iraq’s President Abdul Latif Rashid announced that he filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Mohammed Sudani and Finance Minister Taif Sami over Baghdad not sending salary payments to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). This is the latest tit for tat between the central and regional governments.

 

The budget has been a long standing dispute between the two sides. Every year Baghdad and Irbil agree to a budget which includes the KRG exporting oil and sending revenue to the central government in return for Baghdad delivering Kurdistan’s monthly allotment of money. Neither side has complied. The Kurds never meet their export quota or send all their revenues and the central government is routinely late in delivering funds.

 

The KRG is in an especially bad spot today. First, it can no longer export oil because Turkey shut down its pipeline after it lost a court case with Baghdad. This has crippled the Kurdish economy denying it of its major money maker. Second, it is in massive debt to oil traders, oil companies and others. Third, even if the central government regularly delivered budget payments the KRG can’t cover its costs. In December 2024 PM Sudani said that Baghdad would be sending 760 billion dinars a month to Kurdistan but it needs 900 billion just for its public salaries. Fourth, the KRG continues to add new employees even though it can’t pay for the ones it has already. In August 2024 it was reported that federal employees in Kirkuk, Ninewa and Diyala were put on the KRG payroll along with part time workers being made full time. An independent Kurdish MP claimed this added another 120 billion dinars to Kurdistan’s budget. Like Baghdad the ruling Kurdish parties also have ghost employees and workers collecting more than one salary. This all means that the Kurds have no real leverage in this argument and no alternatives either. It is literally at the mercy of Baghdad.

 

SOURCES

 

Al Aalem, “Salary crisis again .. The region increases its value and Baghdad raises the red card,” 8/26/24

 

Abdalrahman, Didar, “Iraq won’t pay KRG full amount needed for salaries: Sudani,” Rudaw, 12/4/24

 

Mayiwar, Sehend, “Iraqi president sues premier, finance minister over unpaid KRG salaries,” Rudaw, 2/9/25