ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The Iraqi Council of Ministers approved a draft agreement between Erbil and Baghdad, which seeks to resolve financial disputes between the two sides and will allow the disbursement of salaries of Kurdistan Region’s civil servants after more than two-and-a-half months of suspension, a well-informed source told The New Region.

The source added that the Iraqi government agreed to fund salaries for the month of May.

“Within three to five days, the salaries will be paid,” the Kurdistan Region’s finance ministry said in a statement.

Thursday's decision came after the Kurdistan Region’s Council of Ministers on Wednesday said they had reached “a joint understanding” with the federal government to hand over oil and non-oil revenues to Baghdad in exchange for the latter resuming the payment of the Kurdistan Region's financial entitlements, coming after months of negotiations to resolve the crisis.

In late May, the Iraqi government said it was “unable to continue funding the Region” for the rest of the year, arguing that Erbil has already exceeded its share of the annual budget, and accused the Kurdistan Region of not abiding by the budget law.