Kurdistan Region finance ministry denies report it sought to delay June salaries in Baghdad talks

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Finance and Economy has rejected media reports that its delegation asked Baghdad to postpone the disbursement of June salaries during a recent visit to the federal capital. In a statement titled "A lie has short legs," the ministry said some media outlets and social media accounts have circulated misleading information about the delegation's trip. The ministry said the salary file is governed by a Federal Court ruling that separates political and technical matters, and it urged the public to disregard the claims. It added that the delegation's agenda in Baghdad covered customs issues, the implementation of the Asycuda system, taxes, regional companies, customs exemptions, protection of local products and quality control. During a bilateral meeting with the Federal Minister of Finance, the delegation raised the local-revenue file and requested that 50 percent of regional revenues be handed over to the federal government in line with the budget and financial management law, based on monthly reconciliation reports. The ministry said revenues are not fully collected by the end of the month, with reconciliation reports issued in the first ten days of the following month, making any suspension or postponement of salary payments impossible. No further details on the outcome of the Baghdad talks were immediately available.