Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shayaa al-Sudani confirmed on Tuesday evening that fraudulent dollar transfers abroad were being monitored, which was revealed by the application of the "Swift" system to monitor financial transfers, in conjunction with the decline in the value of the dinar against the dollar.
The prime minister said in televised statements that currency smuggling abroad was carried out through transfers based on forged invoices for imports whose prices were inflated.
Al-Sudani said, "What does it mean that we were importing goods worth $300 million per day? Inevitably, this money was coming out of Iraq, and this has been a chronic problem for years."
The Prime Minister inferred the existence of smuggling by saying that before the implementation of the Swift system, the Central Bank of Iraq used to sell merchants quantities of dollars that are many times more than what they sell them today, and yet there are no missing goods in the markets today.
He added, "There are commodities that they enter at irrational prices, and it is clear that the aim is to get the currency out of Iraq. This matter must stop."
Al-Sudani confirmed that his government had formed "specialized security teams" to detect smugglers and seize smuggled funds.
Al-Sudani explained that there is smuggling of money that is transferred to the Kurdistan region, and then goes to neighboring countries, without specifying whether he meant Turkey, Iran or Syria.
Al-Sudani said that the financial situation in Iraq today is in the best condition because businessmen are accustomed to "correct and legitimate trade."
The Prime Minister confirmed that Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and the new governor of the Central Bank will be among the delegation that will go to Washington after a week to discuss the exchange rate mechanism and its fluctuations.
During the past two months, the Iraqi dinar lost more than 10% of its value against the dollar, which prompted youth gatherings and activists to organize a protest last week in front of the Central Bank in Baghdad.
Analysts attribute the decline in the value of the national currency to the Iraqi banking system's compliance with international regulations related to money transfer, as it has become obligatory for banks to conduct transfers via the electronic SWIFT platform, in order to combat smuggling and money laundering.