Shafaq News / The Ministry of Finance of Kurdistan Regional Government announced Sunday that it will pay salaries for the region's employees for   January.

A statement of the Ministry stated that tomorrow, Monday, the salaries of health staff will be disbursed.

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said on Saturday that it had decided to start paying employee salaries "according to the available capabilities."

This came during the meeting of the Prime Minister of the Region, Masrour Barzani, with the government negotiating delegation that visited Baghdad last week.

KRG statement reported to Shafaq News, that the delegation, which was headed by Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani, made a detailed presentation on the results of the visit to Baghdad, and the delegation stressed the continuation of discussions with the federal government to ensure and secure the rights of Kurdistan Region and its constitutional entitlements.

The statement added that KRG delegation is scheduled to visit Baghdad again this week to complete what was discussed between the two sides.

The current financial situation in the region was highlighted in the meeting, as the government presidency decided to start disbursing employee’s salaries according to the available capabilities currently, according to the statement.

The meeting also focused on the importance of continuing to implement the reform law, and it was decided to start recovering money from companies owed to the government this week, after the expiry of the deadline for notification that was sent to these companies.

The delegation of the region had arrived on Tuesday evening to Baghdad and held, on Wednesday and Thursday, two rounds of discussions with the Iraqi government, as well as consultations with leaders and officials of Iraqi political parties on resolving the outstanding differences between Baghdad and Erbil.

The visit came days after the Iraqi government cut the salaries of employees of Kurdistan Region after it said that the region had not fulfilled its obligations in the financial budget represented by the delivery of 250 thousand barrels of oil per day to the federal government.

KRG affirms its commitment to 2019 budget lines and the agreement signed with Baghdad in early January 2019.

The agreement includes the delivery of Kurdistan Region for 250 thousand barrels per day of oil to the Federal Government in return for handing Baghdad a share of about 13 % of the budget to the region in addition to the salaries of employees and Peshmerga.

The cut in the salaries of the employees of the region sparked widespread criticism inside and outside the region, where observers considered that this decision comes in the context of political pressure coinciding with the efforts of Prime Minister-designate Mustafa Al-Kadhimi to form the new government.

There are still pending issues between the two sides for many years, most  among them is the disputed territories, how to manage oil wealth, the budget of Peshmerga forces, and others.