Contact Admin. Iraq attained its independence as a kingdom in It was proclaimed a "republic" in after a coup overthrew the monarchy, but in actuality, a series of strongmen ruled the country until Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war In October , Iraqis approved a constitution in a national referendum and, pursuant to this document, elected a member Council of Representatives COR in December The COR approved most cabinet ministers in May , marking the transition to Iraq's first constitutional government in nearly a half century.
Iraq held elections for provincial councils in all governorates in January and April and postponed the next provincial elections, originally planned for April , until Iraq has held three national legislative elections since , most recently in May when legislators were elected to the COR. His cabinet has been hailed as one of the most technocratic since Between and , Iraq was engaged in a military campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham ISIS to recapture territory lost in the western and northern portion of the country.
Iraqi and allied forces recaptured Mosul, the country's second-largest city, in and drove ISIS out of its other urban strongholds. Also in late , ABADI responded to an independence referendum held by the Kurdish Regional Government by ordering Iraqi forces to take control of disputed territories across central and northern Iraq that were previously occupied and governed by Kurdish forces. Iraq's GDP growth slowed to 1. The Iraqi Government received its third tranche of funding from its Stand-By Arrangement SBA with the IMF in August , which is intended to stabilize its finances by encouraging improved fiscal management, needed economic reform, and expenditure reduction.
The overall standard of living depends on global oil prices, the central government passage of major policy reforms, a stable security environment post-ISIS, and the resolution of civil discord with the Kurdish Regional Government KRG.
Iraq's contracts with major oil companies have the potential to further expand oil exports and revenues, but Iraq will need to make significant upgrades to its oil processing, pipeline, and export infrastructure to enable these deals to reach their economic potential. In , Iraqi oil exports from northern fields were disrupted following a KRG referendum that resulted in the Iraqi Government reasserting federal control over disputed oil fields and energy infrastructure in Kirkuk.
