Iraq is unable to pay its full debts despite the great financial abundance

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[size=52]Iraq is unable to pay its full debts despite the great financial abundance[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad/ Saif Abdullah[/size]
[size=45]Since the rise in oil prices during the year 2021 until now, Iraq has witnessed a large surplus of funds as a result of the escalating oil imports, while the government confirms its inability to pay the debts in full for several reasons, amid a parliamentary emphasis on money control to ensure the achievement of the government program and benefit from these surpluses.[/size]
[size=45]In this regard, the appearance of Muhammad Salih, the financial advisor to the Prime Minister, confirmed that it is not possible to pay the debts in full from the financial abundance due to oil revenues at the end of the fiscal year.[/size]
[size=45]Saleh pointed out that there is a "vague confusion between the foreign reserves of the Central Bank of Iraq, which today represent 85% of the country's foreign currency reserves (which correspond to the liabilities represented by the issued national currency - the dinar - and represent the currency cover for the purpose of economic stability and maintaining purchasing power) on the one hand, and abundance on the one hand. On the other hand, the finances come from the accumulated oil revenues as a financial reserve that is not currently spent (due to the lack of legislation for the general budget). Saleh added, "As part of it has been allocated today to meet the expenses of the Emergency Food Security and Development Law No. 2 of 2022," expecting that "the financial abundance or remaining surpluses at the end of 2022 will be about $15 billion, so it is illogical to go with it to extinguish long-term debts and make The country is free of any basic financial hedging against potential international economic risks.”[/size]
[size=45]He continued, "If the repayable foreign debt is between 20-23 billion dollars, the expected financial abundance is itself not enough to pay the total foreign debts immediately in front of great national needs required by the country's investment spending, which is strategically important and urgent."[/size]
[size=45]For his part, Member of Parliament Rafiq Al-Salihi revealed that Iraq has a large financial surplus that is the result of high oil prices.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Salihi said in an interview with (Al-Mada): "We will work with deputies in Parliament during the coming period to improve the country's economic situation and proceed towards repaying the debts in a way that suits the economic policy that will be drawn up by the new government."[/size]
[size=45]He added, "We, in turn, will work to monitor the money to ensure the achievement of the government program and the benefit of these surpluses."[/size]
[size=45]In addition, the researcher in economic affairs, Abd al-Salam Hassan, explained that the debts, whether external or internal, entail interests, and therefore paying them in one payment does not bring this interest to the other party, and therefore paying them all requires a prior agreement.[/size]
[size=45]Hassan said in an interview with (Al-Mada), that "the political will has nothing to do with the issue of debt repayment, and the evidence for this is what happened with Kuwait's debts that were paid through the rise in oil prices and the complete termination of its file."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The budget stipulates that the caretaker government does not have the right to dispose of these debts."[/size]
[size=45]On (September 23, 2022), the head of the caretaker government, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, had expected to increase the country's cash reserve to $100 billion, stressing that Iraq had the largest and fastest economic growth and became the first in the Middle East and fifth in the world.[/size]
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