“Tidbits From TNT” Monday Morning 12-23-2023

TNT:

Tishwsh Al-Sudani: Iraq has regained its leading role in the region and has become an influential and effective country

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani confirmed today, Sunday, that Iraq has regained its leading role in the region and has become an influential and effective country in its surroundings.

Al-Sudani's office stated in a statement received by "Mil" that "Al-Sudani met in the city of Mosul, today, Sunday, with a group of tribal sheikhs and representatives of the various components and spectrums in Nineveh Governorate . "

Al-Sudani stressed his keenness to "meet the sheikhs, dignitaries, religious men and elite of the province's people," indicating that "his visit to Nineveh comes within the government's work methodology to follow up on the affairs of citizens in the various provinces, lay the foundation stone for a number of projects, follow up on work at Mosul International Airport, and set the tenth of next June as the date for its opening . "

The statement continued, "All the projects that were launched today in Nineveh were destroyed by terrorism, and in the days of celebrating Victory Day over the terrorist gangs, we are rebuilding the ruins of the dark era of ISIS and working to launch new projects . "

Al-Sudani confirmed that "a series of infrastructure projects will be launched in the governorate within 30 days, and the second phase of the ring road project will begin to alleviate traffic congestion in the city," stressing that "the wheel of construction and reconstruction in the governorate continues with the solidarity of its people."

The statement explained that "the true image of the Iraqi people triumphed over what terrorism wanted in targeting security and peaceful coexistence among all components and sects," explaining that "the strife of terrorism and the foreign agenda harmed society in Nineveh, and tried to drive a wedge of division among Iraqis."

He pointed out that "Iraq today is on the right track in building a state that respects the citizen, adheres to the constitution, and builds its institutions in a way that meets the aspirations of the citizens," stressing that "Iraq has regained its leading role in the region and has become an influential and effective country in its surroundings . "

The statement pointed out that "Iraq today is putting forward initiatives, solutions and positions that are consistent with the challenges in the region . "

The statement concluded: "We took the initiative to make contacts and visits with sister countries, and launched an initiative to establish security in Syria. We presented an Iraqi paper at the Aqaba Conference in Jordan regarding Syria, and it was welcomed by all brothers . "link

************

Tishwash:  2025.. The year of cautious optimism in Iraq

The international economics specialist, Nawar Al-Saadi, revealed, on Saturday, the future financial and economic expectations for Iraq at the beginning of the new year 2025 .

Al-Saadi told Shafaq News Agency, "The future economic and financial expectations for Iraq at the beginning of the new year carry a mixture of optimism and caution, as they depend largely on a set of economic, political and regional factors that directly affect the country's financial and economic stability ."

He added that "international estimates indicate an improvement in Iraq's economic growth rates, according to reports from the International Monetary Fund, which expected the Iraqi economy to grow by 1.4% next year, with an expected increase of 5.3% in 2025. This growth reflects the recovery of the economy after the challenges it faced in the past years, especially after the economic contraction of 2.2% in 2022, and economic growth will be mainly driven by the stability of oil prices and increased investments in non-oil sectors ."

Al-Saadi pointed out that “there are fears of a deterioration in the financial situation due to the expected deficit in the state’s general budget, as the deficit is expected to widen to 7.6% of GDP during the coming year, compared to 1.3% this year. This deficit is attributed to fluctuations in oil prices, which are the main source of government revenues, and the economic situation is further complicated by the heavy dependence on oil, which constitutes about 90% of Iraq’s revenues. Any decline in its global prices could lead to severe financial pressures on the government .”

“Other challenges relate to inflation rates, which are expected to rise slightly to 3.5% in 2025. This rise reflects the effects of financial pressures and internal economic challenges, including higher prices for goods and services as a result of increased production and import costs. In terms of oil production, Iraq is expected to continue to maintain a high level of production, with plans to boost its production capacity to around 4 million barrels per day by the first quarter of 2025. However, the success of these efforts will remain linked to political stability and relations with OPEC, in addition to achieving long-term investments in energy infrastructure, ” he added.

Al-Saadi continued: “With regard to the banking sector, the government seeks to implement structural reforms to improve the efficiency of the banking system and increase transparency. These reforms come within a larger vision to develop the Iraqi economy and diversify sources of income away from excessive dependence on oil .”

The international economics expert concluded his speech by referring to all the aforementioned data, saying that “Iraq may be facing hot economic and financial events at the beginning of the new year, and the main challenge lies in the government’s ability to manage these challenges effectively through balanced financial and economic policies that aim to enhance economic stability and diversify the economy to achieve sustainable growth  link

************

Tishwash:  Politician: Iraq has no fear of Trump reaching the White House

Independent politician Wael al-Rikabi confirmed on Sunday that Iraq will not be negatively affected by the arrival of US President Donald Trump to power in the United States, pointing out that there is an Iraqi desire to arm from new sources other than the United States. 

Al-Rikabi said in an interview with Al-Maalouma Agency, “Iraq has nothing to worry about Trump coming to power in the White House or Biden staying, as it is committed to all international agreements and controls in a way that made it a pivotal state, and the visits that the country has witnessed recently are evidence of that," indicating that "Iraq is the focus of attention of all countries for what it possesses of capabilities and energies, and the state of chaos cannot be returned to it, and it has not broken "any official international agreement." 

He added, "The process of changing power in America concerns the United States, and there are agreements between us and them, although the United States violated these agreements," noting that "the Americans did not provide Iraq with the sufficient weapons required, such as air defenses, and Washington did not cooperate with successful Iraqi governments in this file.” 

He pointed out that "there is a desire in Iraq to arm itself with countries other than the United States after the recent events in the region, and Iraq is currently able to overcome this issue, and the existing weapons make the situation reassuring," noting that "everyone knows the extent of the United States' defense and support for the Zionist entity at the expense of the countries of the region." 

It is noteworthy that several representatives and political forces warned of the danger of the Iraqi army's weak armament in light of the events taking place in the region, the latest of which was the control of terrorist groups over Syria and the threat of the Zionist entity to target Iraq.  link

Mot .... and now a Christmas - oooooh oooooooh oooooooh 

Mot:  .. Sum just can't Take a Joke --- LOL