Iraqi Kurdistan's Brewing Crisis

Sukru said the United States and Europe have to intervene in the crisis. “America has to bring pressure,” said Sukru. “They are giving weapons to Kurdish parties. This could be one reason for the crisis. The party with heavier weapons could be a threat to others. Don’t forget that until today, there hasn’t been any state institution in Kurdistan. Everything was done by political parties. One party can instruct the police to prevent a minister from coming to his ministry. This is unprecedented. … The US and Europe have to press political parties to refrain from threatening others and claiming the upper hand. The US should tell them clearly that it is giving those guns to Kurds to fight IS, not each other.”

Economic problems in the region go back to 2014 when Baghdad stopped paying its agreed contribution to the Kurdish regional budget and accused the Kurds of exporting their own oil in violation of agreements. The economic situation worsened with IS attacks. Although Baghdad and Erbil reached an agreement on oil, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the government did not have enough funds and delayed sending a reduced Kurdish share. The Kurdish government responded by exporting its own oil. But when oil prices dropped to $50 a barrel, the Kurdish budget and income calculations were disrupted. That is why the salaries went unpaid.

The economic crisis is really biting, especially considering that more than 1 million people of a total population of more than 7 million live on government salaries.