ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi Parliament Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi said Friday that his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf told him he would discuss exempting Iraq from restrictions on navigation through the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian leaders.

“The Speaker of the Iranian Shura Council [parliament] informed us that he will discuss exempting Iraq from the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian leaders,” Halbousi said at a conference in Baghdad.

Iraq has been facing a worsening financial crisis since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran, with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz massively cutting off Iraq’s main source of income: oil exports.

Halbousi made the remarks following Ghalibaf’s three-day visit to Iraq, during which the Iranian parliament speaker held high-level meetings with Iraqi officials. Ghalibaf said the visit sought to bolster a "new order in the region" free from external interference.

Ghalibaf also said Friday that Tehran and Baghdad would hold a meeting within the next two weeks to advance economic cooperation, according to semi-official Tasnim news agency.

“It was decided to hold a meeting in the next two weeks, where both the Chamber of Commerce and our friends in Iraq would travel to Tehran, and our Chamber of Commerce and businessmen would attend this meeting,” Ghalibaf said.

“The sanctions have put pressure on both Iraq and Iran, but this is also a great opportunity for us to have close cooperation,” he added.

Following the collapse of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU) in late June after Iran targeted a vessel in the strait for failing to heed its approved routes, Tehran has once again maintained restrictions on navigation through the waterway, directly affecting global energy prices.

The continuation of the war has raised concerns that measures implemented by the Iraqi government to offset declining revenues may not be viable long-term solutions, potentially leaving Baghdad with difficulties paying civil servant salaries in the coming months.