Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Meets U.S. Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence
Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Chairman of the Ministerial Council for Economy Mr. Fuad Hussein met with U.S. Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Mr. Brian Nelson, and the accompanying delegations of both countries, at the Department of state’s headquarters in Washington DC, on Friday, July 12, 2024. The meeting discussed the issues both parties are working on in accordance with their previous reform agreements.
Minister Fuad Hussein affirmed the Iraqi government’s commitment on proceeding with its reform and economic measures concerning the Iraqi banking system and the energy sector. He explained that the government’s policy aims to achieve Iraqi energy independence through associated gas investment projects, and to develop the working mechanism of Iraqi banks in line with international standards to ensure transparency and provide open data, enabling banks to provide the services that the Iraqi people need, in addition the Minister called on the U.S. side for reconsidering the sanctions imposed on about 32 Iraqi banks, as they had engaged in the structural reform process.
Minister Fuad Hussein indicated the the stability of the Iraqi Dinar exchange rate to US Dollar represents a fundamental pillar for achieving economic, social and political stability in Iraq, which is what the government strives to achieve, calling on the relevant U.S. institutions to review it and build on it.
On his part, Under Secretary Nelson commended the steps taken by the Iraqi Government to support Iraqi economy and address the challenges it faces. Additionally he stressed that the relevant US institutions understand the seriousness of the Iraqi government in modernizing the working mechanisms in Iraqi institutions, expressing the readiness of the United States to assist Iraq in addressing the obstacles facing its reforms, which will reflect positively on the Iraqi economy.
