Parliament delays its session without setting a date

The Parliament Speaker, Osama al-Nujaifi decided to delay the session after lack of the quorum required for the number of members present because the Kurdish MPs boycotted the session who are opposed to the draft budget as approved by the Council of Ministers.

MP of the State of law coalition told “Shafer News", that “The next session has not been identified yet “.

The Kurds object to an article within the draft budget included obliging Kurdistan to export 400 thousand barrels of oil per day from the regions’ fields through the Iraqi export company “SOMO " Otherwise, Baghdad would deduct the money from the share of Kurdistan in the budget , amounting to 17 % .

Kurds seek to export oil from the fields directly to Turkey via a new pipeline completed late last year , but Baghdad refuses and says that it has the only right in managing the oil wealth .

The parties are negotiating for months to reach an agreement.

The federal budget for 2014 is about 174 trillion dinars, which is the biggest in the country's history .

Kurdistan had stopped pumping oil to the Iraqi government line in late 2012 because of disagreements over payments to foreign companies operating in the region .

Kurdistan demands for about four billion dollars as dues of oil companies that develop fields in the region , but Baghdad refuses to pay.

Kurdish MPs in the Iraqi Parliament has boycotted the voting session on the budget in 2013 in protest against the non-inclusion of oil companies’ dues under the terms of the budget.