TNT:
Tishwash: Kurdistan Delegation in Baghdad to Discuss Oil Exports and Output Increase
Talks expected with Iraqi officials and SOMO aimed at raising Kurdistan Region oil exports to 500,000 barrels per day amid ongoing production constraints
A delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) arrived in Baghdad on Wednesday to hold a series of meetings with senior Iraqi officials focused on oil exports and mechanisms to increase production and shipments, according to Kurdistan24 correspondent in Baghdad, Dilan Barzan.
The delegation is scheduled to begin its first meeting at 12:00 noon on Wednesday with Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi, marking the start of a broader round of talks with federal authorities.
A well-informed source told Kurdistan24 that the KRG delegation is on an official visit to Baghdad, with the main objective of increasing Kurdistan Region oil exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
The delegation is expected to meet with Prime Minister al-Zaidi, Oil Minister Bassim Mohammed Khudair Al-Abadi, and representatives of the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO) to discuss export arrangements.
According to Kurdistan24 sources, the delegation includes Acting Minister of Natural Resources Kamal Muhammad, Head of the Council of Ministers Diwan Omed Sabah, and Cabinet Secretary Amanj Rahim.
A source within Iraq’s Oil Ministry told Kurdistan24 that crude exports from the Kurdistan Region have declined over recent months due to security conditions affecting oil fields, impacting both export volumes and overall regional revenues.
The talks in Baghdad are expected to focus on increasing oil exports to 500,000 barrels per day, alongside stabilizing production and ensuring secure transport routes.
Exports from the Kurdistan Region to the Turkish port of Ceyhan were suspended in 2023 following a ruling by an international arbitration court, before partially resuming at the end of 2025. However, recent months have seen another decline in output and exports due to renewed regional security tensions and concerns over the safety of oil infrastructure.
Officials from both sides are now seeking to stabilize export flows and address operational challenges that have affected production levels across key oil fields in the Kurdistan Region. link
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Tishwash: “It’s no longer a separate issue”: Washington is reshaping its priorities in Iraq.
“It’s no longer a separate issue”: Washington is reshaping its priorities in Iraq.
Diler Khalaf Osman, a researcher in international relations and Middle Eastern affairs at the University of Tennessee, affirmed that Washington’s decision to merge the Iraq and Syria files under a single envoy reflects a fundamental shift in US strategy toward the region.
Osman stated that this move confirms the United States no longer treats Iraq as a separate or isolated issue with its own internal particularities, but rather as part of a broader regional security and geopolitical framework.
He added that this approach represents a shift from the US approach that has prevailed since 2003, which focused on democracy and development, to a regional approach that views Iraq through the lens of regional power balances, aiming to reduce Iranian influence and redirect the geopolitical trajectory of both countries in a way that serves US interests.
The researcher pointed out that the background of the new envoy, Tom Barrack, and his ideology related to the idea of “America First” reveal the features of his mission, as he does not seem concerned with the files of democracy, federalism and political pluralism as much as he is concerned with strengthening the central state and its security capabilities, to ensure that it does not pose any threat to American interests, and to enable it to manage its security itself in the long term, which reduces the need for a direct American military presence. link
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Tishwash: A huge financial surplus… and a service reality that has not changed: What happened?
The era of Mustafa Al-Kadhimi has sparked widespread controversy that continues to resurface whenever the issue of managing public funds and oil surpluses is raised, especially in light of talk about huge sums that entered the state treasury during the period of high oil prices, compared to a clear limitation in the size of service and development projects completed on the ground.
While supporters of that phase promote the idea of “financial stability” and crisis management in a difficult economic situation, critics argue that the surpluses that were subsequently achieved did not translate into a real reconstruction boom, and their effects remained limited to covering operational expenses and salaries, without a tangible impact on infrastructure or basic services.
At the heart of this debate stands the most prominent economic decision at the end of 2020, when the exchange rate of the dinar against the dollar was adjusted. The government at the time considered this decision a necessary step to address the financial deficit, while opponents saw it as an influential shift that directly affected the prices of basic commodities and the standard of living, and left a long-term impact on the purchasing power of citizens.
As oil revenues increased in subsequent years, questions grew about the absence of strategic projects commensurate with those revenues, as observers believe that the period did not witness a construction momentum that matched the size of the available resources, with the exception of continued operational spending and covering the state’s financial obligations.
The issue of investment projects also remained controversial, given the failure or absence of a number of announced initiatives, and the increasing voices that spoke of a gap between the amount of money flowing into the country and what was actually achieved in terms of development and services.
On the other hand, supporters of that era still maintain that the government faced complex political, economic and security challenges, and that performance evaluation should take into account the nature of the circumstances in which the country was run.
Between these two narratives, the Al-Kadhimi era remains one of the most controversial economic periods in Iraq, between those who describe it as managing a difficult crisis, and those who consider it a huge financial opportunity that was not invested in the way that could have changed the reality of services and reconstruction. link
Tishwash: Iraqi PM proposes US-backed investment plan linked to weapons control
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has proposed a plan to the United States that would link the expansion of US-led service and investment projects in Iraq to efforts to restrict weapons to state control and facilitate the disarmament of armed factions, a political source told Shafaq News on Tuesday.
The proposal aims to shift the weapons issue from a direct security challenge into a broader political and economic settlement by providing practical alternatives for faction members, particularly through employment opportunities and productive development projects.
“Al-Zaidi believes that the involvement of American companies in service and investment sectors could provide the government with economic and political support for implementing a gradual disarmament plan,” the source said, adding that It would also seek to create jobs for young Iraqis, integrate some faction members into the labor market, and reduce their reliance on armed formations operating outside state institutions.
Earlier in the day, Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH), one of Iraq’s most powerful Iran-aligned armed factions, announced the formation of an internal central committee tasked with implementing the group’s disengagement from Popular Mobilization Forces structures and transferring its weapons, personnel, and equipment to state authority.
Ashab al-Kahf, also one of Iraq’s prominent clandestine armed groups, rejected outright any political calls for factions to surrender their weapons, dismissing arguments invoking the supreme Shia religious authority in support of disarmament as false. Kataib Hezbollah welcomed efforts to centralize arms under government oversight while signaling it would not disarm.
Al-Zaidi has made weapons restriction a central plank of his government program, welcoming al-Sadr’s earlier disarmament initiative as a step that would strengthen Iraq’s security institutions in performing their constitutional duties, and calling on other armed factions to follow through official state channels, on the principle that “the authority to bear arms and enforce the law belongs exclusively to the state.” link
