Everyone is a winner,” said Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani of last week’s landmark oil agreement between the central government, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and oil companies operating in the Region (MEES, 26 September). Despite his positive tone and the euphoria of Iraqi and Kurdish officials now that an agreement has finally been reached and exports have restarted, the question is: can the agreement survive Iraq’s upcoming parliamentary elections on 11 November?
Addressing this year’s Chatham House Iraq Initiative Conference in London in a pre-recorded message on 1 October, the PM said that the deal has achieved multiple goals: “we implemented the constitution, [budget] law and federal court rulings, the KRG today enjoys its required funding…and this deal promotes investment, safeguards the companies’ rights and reinforces Iraq’s national economy.” (CONTINUED - 1705 WORDS)
