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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iraqi parliament late Wednesday passed the long-awaited 2021 federal budget bill, reports state media.
The legislative body had earlier in the night passed Article 11, which concerns the Kurdistan Region's share.
“The article that was passed was an amended version [...] in which the Kurdistan Regional Government will hand over the revenue of no less than 250,000 barrels at the price of SOMO to Baghdad,” Hope coalition MP Ahmad Haji Rashid told Rudaw English.
"I congratulate all the people of the Kurdistan Region," Bashir al-Haddad, deputy speaker of Iraqi parliament, told reporters.
"The Kurdistan Region's share is 12.67 percent of the budget," he noted.
Erbil relies heavily on Baghdad for its funds, but the question of oil-for-budget had been a thorny issue between both sides. A KRG delegation led by Deputy PM Qubad Talabani had visited Baghdad several times to try and resolve the issue.
"We will give our statement once all of the bill is voted on," Talabani told Rudaw's Halkawt Aziz.
Article 20 of the budget bill, which concerns cuts to the salaries of the three presidencies, the ministries, and employees, was rejected, according to Iraqi state media.
"I believe that the KRG could pay salaries without cuts with this bill passing," Ahmad Saffar of the parliamentary finance committee told Aziz.
Updated at 23:19 to mark passage of bill
The legislative body had earlier in the night passed Article 11, which concerns the Kurdistan Region's share.
“The article that was passed was an amended version [...] in which the Kurdistan Regional Government will hand over the revenue of no less than 250,000 barrels at the price of SOMO to Baghdad,” Hope coalition MP Ahmad Haji Rashid told Rudaw English.
"The Kurdistan Region's share is 12.67 percent of the budget," he noted.
Erbil relies heavily on Baghdad for its funds, but the question of oil-for-budget had been a thorny issue between both sides. A KRG delegation led by Deputy PM Qubad Talabani had visited Baghdad several times to try and resolve the issue.
"We will give our statement once all of the bill is voted on," Talabani told Rudaw's Halkawt Aziz.
Article 20 of the budget bill, which concerns cuts to the salaries of the three presidencies, the ministries, and employees, was rejected, according to Iraqi state media.
"I believe that the KRG could pay salaries without cuts with this bill passing," Ahmad Saffar of the parliamentary finance committee told Aziz.
Updated at 23:19 to mark passage of bill
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