Iraq working to launch 5G nationwide simultaneously, minister says

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq's Communications Minister Mustafa Sind said the government is working to roll out 5G services simultaneously across all cities and in the Kurdistan Region, rather than province by province. Speaking to the state news agency, Sind acknowledged that the Kurdistan Region had taken earlier steps on 5G, adding that coordination between Baghdad and Erbil would be ensured. He said he had received an invitation from the Kurdistan Region's prime minister to visit Erbil within his first week in office and was preparing to travel. Sind said a key outstanding issue between the federal government and the region centers on an internet line running from Basra to Europe via Kurdistan territory. The ministry wants international partners to deal with a single federal authority, with agreements handled through the federal Communications Ministry. The Kurdistan Region's local communications ministry oversees telecom companies in the area, but the region does not have an independent communications regulator comparable to the federal body, meaning it relies on the federal ministry in emergencies, according to Sind's remarks.