Kurdistan Region Salary Crisis Dominates Baghdad-Erbil Talks

BAGHDAD, Iraq — BAGHDAD — A Kurdish parliamentarian said the Kurdistan Region's unpaid salaries will remain the central sticking point in negotiations with Baghdad, with any resolution unlikely before parliament returns from recess in early July. Hêrim Kemal Ağa, an MP from the Kurdistan Democratic Party, said cabinet vacancies in Prime Minister Ali Zeydi's government will also be taken up after the recess. He said joint committees are continuing efforts to resolve the salary crisis and other outstanding disputes between the two sides. Ağa recalled previous agreements under which the Kurdistan Region committed to transferring 120 billion dinars monthly from non-oil revenues to the federal government and exporting 230,000 barrels of oil per day. He said those accords must be implemented without additional conditions. Iraq is now focused on drafting a 2027 budget, with no new budget approval for 2026 currently on the agenda. Ağa said maintaining the existing agreements is essential for fiscal stability.