Iraq’s currency ended its nosedive after a meeting between the Iraqi Central Bank head and a top US Treasury official.
Under Secretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence Brian E. Nelson said in a statement Saturday that he had met with Central Bank of Iraq Governor Ali al-Allaq in Istanbul the day before “to discuss banking sector reforms and a mutual commitment to anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.”
He praised Iraq’s “steadfast dedication” to improving its compliance with international standards and “and offered continued cooperation in modernizing the banking sector,” the statement said.
Measures taken by the United States in recent months to stamp out money laundering and the channeling of dollars to Iran and Syria from Iraq have severely restricted Iraq’s access to hard currency.
Since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iraq’s foreign currency reserves have been housed at the United States’ Federal Reserve, giving the Americans significant control over Iraq’s supply of dollars.