KTFA:

Samson:  Parliamentary Finance: The 2021 budget will arrive within days, and we did not allow a repeat of the 2020 scenario

17th November 2020

A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Shirwan Mirza, confirmed, on Tuesday, that the 2021 budget is nearing the House of Representatives, indicating that Parliament will not allow the government to have no budget for the next year at all, as it has done during 2020.  LINK

Popeye7:  The article are making it quite clear they are clearing the runway for take off of their economy... Kinda of like pulling on slingshot as hard as one can to ensure maximum velocity, as Iraq prepares for this momentous opening of their economy to the world's nations...

Popeye7 cont….If they do intend to vote on the 2021 budget next week, this weekend certainly seems like a good time to release the rate on the world economic scene... Sunday is the 22, or 11/22/2020... So 11 plus 22 equals 33...

33 is considered an interesting number in many respects both biblically, and from those who place their faith in numerology... Some believe Jesus died at the age of 33, and there are those who believe HIS crucifixion took place in the year 33 AD... 

From a numerology standpoint, 33 is a very powerful number, and can symbolize growth, and abundance... While one being able to have more than they formerly had in life in order to help others... 

I was thinking about how Frank had been mentioning the number 9 quite a bit of late... Interesting how the 22nd of November, or 11/22/2029 will be the next time Thanksgiving falls on this particular date... Which will be 9 years from this year... 11/22 is the lowest day, and furthest from the end of the month of November that Thanksgiving can fall on...

Probably the most famous historical occurrence that took place on 11/22, sadly, was the assassination of President Kennedy  back in 1963... 

Anyway, just pondering, and sharing my thoughts... Have a great day folks, and God's peace, and joy be upon us all through the power of HIS SPIRIT...

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Don961:  Al-Kazemi receives a phone call from Pompeo about the future of the relationship between Iraq and the coalition forces

 Policy  ,   11/17/2020 23:31   Baghdad - Iraq today: Today

Tuesday, the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, received a phone call from the Secretary of State of the United States of America, Mike Pompeo.

Al-Kazemi's media office said in a statement that "during the call, they discussed bilateral relations between the two countries, as well as the development of the situation in the region."

The contact also discussed, according to the statement, the development of cooperation between the two countries in various fields. They also discussed the future of cooperation between Iraq and the international coalition led by the United States of America, in light of the growing Iraqi capabilities in fighting terrorism.LINK

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Don961:  The launchers of Katyusha rockets last night "will not pass without prosecution and accountability." ... and the security services began procedures for identifying the perpetrators.

Security  ,   11/18/2020 11:37   Baghdad - Iraq today:

The spokesman for the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Major General Yahya Rasoul, confirmed that "some people intend to find an excuse to destabilize security" in the country.

The military spokesman's comment came after the fortified Green Zone in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, was targeted by seven Katyusha rockets, late Tuesday night.

In a statement, the Joint Operations Command announced that a child was killed and five civilians were wounded, as four rockets landed inside the Green Zone and three in its vicinity.

Rasul said, "The Iraqi government continues to work for a secure and stable Iraq, but some are trying to find an excuse to bomb areas in the capital with the aim of destabilizing security, and the result was the death of a child and the wounding of five civilians who are not guilty."

The Joint Operations Command said in its statement that the attack " It will not pass without prosecution and reckoning. "And if"

She added that despite "the Iraqi government continuing to achieve sovereign gains, and raising the level of professionalism and competence of our security forces and their readiness to confront terrorist threats ... some outlaw forces insist ... and reaffirm their bet on shuffling the cards and fighting stability, in order to serve their far-reaching narrow interests and goals." For the national interest. "

This attack coincided with Washington's announcement that it would withdraw 500 of its soldiers from Iraq, leaving 2,500 soldiers in it.  LINK

Samson:  Iraq announces the withdrawal of hundreds of US forces: the remaining non-combat elements

18th November, 2020

The Iraqi Foreign Minister, Fuad Hussein announced on Wednesday that Baghdad and Washington had reached an agreement on the withdrawal of 500 US forces from the country, bringing the number of those forces down to 2,500.

Fouad Hussein said in a press conference held today, that "after the important communication and consultation between Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, it was agreed to announce the withdrawal of 500 other US forces, bringing the total number of those forces present in Iraq to 2,500. an item". He added, "We have entered the fourth and final stage of the withdrawal of US forces, and when we talk about this stage, we have reached zero and that the combat operations which were the reason for the presence of foreign forces in Iraq will end," stressing that the US forces that will remain in Iraq are not combat.

The minister continued by saying that "foreign forces came from 80 countries to the country at the request of the federal government," adding that "in light of the military reports and in the military sense, ISIS has been defeated, but at the same time its terrorist cells are still present in the Hamrin hills, the Badia desert, and the south." West of Anbar, the outskirts of Kirkuk, and on the other side in Syria." Hussein noted that the federal government will continue to coordinate with its US counterpart, stressing that future work with the American side will continue in the field of intelligence information, military advice and training of Iraqi forces.

On Tuesday, the Pentagon announced that it would reduce the number of US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Acting US Defense Secretary Christopher Miller said the Pentagon would begin withdrawing part of US forces from Afghanistan and Iraq. Miller added that the number of US forces in Iraq would be reduced from 3,200 to 2,500, and in Afghanistan from about 4,500 to 2,500. He indicated that the decision to reduce the forces was taken based on the directions of the outgoing US President Donald Trump and after consulting with the National Security Council and military leaders.

The leader of the Republican majority in the US Senate, Senator Mitch McConnell, issued a warning to his ally, President Donald Trump, against accelerating the pace of the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan or Iraq, considering that such a measure would give extremist movements a " great propaganda victory."

McConnell said in a speech in the Senate that "the consequences of a premature US withdrawal may be even worse than Obama's withdrawal from Iraq in 2011, which led to the rise of ISIS." He added that such a withdrawal would represent a "abandonment" by the United States of its allies, would pave the way for the Taliban movement to extend its influence in Afghanistan, and would allow ISIS and Al Qaeda to regroup in Iraq.  LINK

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Don961:  Al-Kazemi reveals for the first time that he has been pressured to release "corruption whales"

 Policy  ,   11/17/2020 23:09   Baghdad - Iraq today:

The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, revealed on Tuesday that he was under pressure to release what he called "corruption whales."

"The people, the religious authority and the political blocs ask me to fight corruption," Al-Kazemi said in a press conference after heading the weekly meeting of his government in Baghdad.

He added that he faced pressure from "unnamed" parties, after the arrest of a number of corruption suspects, indicating that the lobbying parties were calling for the release of "corruption whales."

Al-Kazemi noted that "some people are passing incorrect information about the torture of these corrupt people to human rights."

During the formation of his government last May, Al-Kazemi pledged to fight widespread corruption in the joints of the state, and is considered a major reason for the failure of successive governments to improve the country's situation, despite the large financial revenues from the sale of oil at the time.

The fight against corruption was at the top of the demands of massive protests that Iraq witnessed over a whole year, starting from October 2019.

Iraq is among the countries in the world that witnesses more corruption, according to the Transparency International Index over the past years.

Regarding the elections, Al-Kazemi said, "There was a meeting between the three presidencies, in the presence of the head of the Supreme Judicial Council and the High Electoral Commission, regarding holding the elections."

He added that his government had drafted a bill to secure financing for holding the elections on the date set for the sixth of next June.

Al-Kazemi indicated that the Electoral Commission was the first to be affected by the borrowing law for not allocating funds to it.

Regarding the strategic dialogue with the United States of America, Al-Kazemi said, "I went to Washington and agreed with the officials on the redeployment of forces abroad, and the withdrawal of the forces from the military bases."

He added that "the strategic dialogue team continues its meetings to reach a final formula on the American withdrawal from Iraq."   LINK

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Don961:  Memorandum of Understanding for the advancement of the Iraqi banking system

Tuesday 17th November 2020  Baghdad: Morning 

The Association of Private Banks and the American Information Systems Audit and Control Association signed a Memorandum of Understanding on governance, security and auditing of information technology.

The executive director of the association, Ali Tariq, said, "The signing of the memorandum of understanding between the association and the Information Systems Audit and Control Association" ISACA ", which is headquartered in America, comes to enhance cooperation in the areas of governance, security and auditing of information technology, and that this step will add new to the national financial sector, which is in a stage. Moving to a new, more developed reality despite all the challenges. "

Big numbers

Tariq pointed out that "communicating with global institutions in the financial sector enhances the world's confidence in the national banking system, which has a pivotal task in supporting the economic activities that the country seeks during the next stage, especially since the volume of work in the country is large and needs an effective and capable banking system. To deal with Big numbers ".

He pointed out that "through the Memorandum of Understanding, the process of developing human resources for workers in the financial sector will take place, a prepared plan for this regard, and includes training, workshops and awareness programs to adhere to the instructions of the Central Bank of Iraq in the field of compliance with standards and controls of information technology and digital security."

Information security

The Iraqi Private Banks Association said in a press release, "The Executive Director of the Association of Private Banks Ali Tariq and the Director of the Iraq Branch of the Association for Auditing and Monitoring Global Information Systems, Ali Mustafa, signed a memorandum of understanding in Baghdad in the fields of qualification, training, workshops, consulting, governance and information security," adding This memorandum will assist the financial sector in achieving global requirements in the field of information technology, information and cyber security. "  LINK

Don961L  An expert reassures about Iraq's internal and external debts: What is published is half the real numbers

463 Economie 2020/11/17 18:48
Baghdad Today _ Follow up 

The financial and banking expert, Mahmoud Dagher, revealed today, Tuesday, the size of the internal and external Iraqi debt by the year 2021, while referring to exaggerated "missile" statements regarding Iraqi debt.

Mahmoud Dagher said, in a televised interview that she followed (Baghdad Today), that "Iraq will enter the year 2021 with a real debt that does not exceed 83 billion dollars, which is 56 internal and external 27 billion dollars," indicating that "there is a so-called outstanding external debt 41 billion A dollar, 85% of which has been liquidated, and most of the foreign debt is political, and no one is asking for it. "

Dagher added, "The talk about 160 billion dollars as debts on Iraq is exaggerated, and the total internal and external bureau does not exceed 83 billion, and this is what you deal with," indicating that "there are those who launch missiles (numbers) that are exaggerated and do not know whether the target is Including planting frustration or motivation. " He continued, "To say that the financial crisis is political is inaccurate.

There is a real financial distress that has caused delays in paying salaries and going towards loans to pay it off."

The financial expert pointed out that "the economic behavior in 2019 had a great impact on the financial crisis. The opening of appointments after the October Revolution added a burden to the salary budget, as it rose from 43 trillion dinars annually to 55 trillion," noting that "the last months in the previous government witnessed Big spending, in addition to entering into dreamy agreements that have damaged the economy. "

Economists talk about a "real bankruptcy", not with the money the Iraqi state witnesses in the process of managing the country's economic system, which ranks fourth in oil, and second in global oil reserves.

According to press reports and statements of economists, the external debt owed by Iraq ranges between 80 and 160 billion dollars.

Earlier, a member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Abd al-Hadi al-Saadawi, confirmed that the budget for next year 2021 does not include a reduction in the salaries of employees, while revealing the size of the internal and external debts of Iraq.

A member of the committee, Abd al-Hadi al-Saadawi, said that the total internal and external debts of Iraq amounted to more than $ 160 billion, indicating that the total debt rose after the approval of the fiscal deficit law during the past months.

He added that "the external debts owed by Iraq and established within (Paris Club, Kuwait debts and the Iraq-Iran war) amounted to more than 136 billion dollars, and the total volume of debts increased after the increase in external borrowing after 2014 and until now, bringing the total debt to more than 160 billion Most of the dollars are foreign debts, and have a very high interest rate.

" Al-Saadawi explained, "Parliament voted on the first borrowing law that the government presented to parliament for 5 billion dollars in external borrowing and 15 trillion dinars in internal borrowing, to pay the salaries of employees until the end of the year," warning that "the state's continuation of external and internal borrowing will lead to declaring the country bankrupt in a way." Full".

He continued by saying that "the government has spent sums of internal borrowing outside the legal frameworks, and we need data from the Ministry of Finance that clarify the mechanisms and outlets of spending," indicating that "the borrowing and local revenues of the state were divided into two parts, which is that 80% of these funds are for the operational budget and 20% for the budget Investment, as the 20% investment was divided into two parts, 50% for ministries' projects, and the same for regional development projects.

With regard to salaries, he pointed out that "the 2021 budget does not include a reduction in the salaries of state employees, and that the (white paper) presented by the government and voted on by Parliament does not include measures to reduce employees' salaries, but only includes allocations for employees of special grades," stressing that " (The White Paper) has not been translated into a budget to be sent to Parliament to find out about the terms of its disbursement. "

El Saadawi concluded by saying that the Finance Committee is waiting for the government to send the budget next year 2021 for discussion and presentation to the House of Representatives for a vote.

It is worth noting that Iraq paid, last year, 2019, loans payable with interest amounting to about 14 trillion dinars.  LINK