The legal basis for the authority of federal regions to conclude international treaties.

Globalization has pushed federal governments to grant federal regions a role in becoming players on the international stage. Traditionally, foreign policy in federal countries was the responsibility of the central government according to the constitution. However, this trend has recently changed, with federal regions engaging in international activities that were once the exclusive domain of the federal state. The established rule in public international law regarding treaty-making does not specify the competent authority for concluding treaties in countries; instead, it leaves that to the constitutional rules of each country. Federal constitutions have taken two different approaches to regulating the authority to conclude treaties: one prohibits federal regions from concluding international treaties, while the other grants federal regions the authority to conclude international treaties, provided there is a guarantee of bilateral approval before the treaty’s commitment is declared. This indicates that there is a legal basis for federal regions to have the authority to conclude international treaties, which is regulated by laws that impose both material and formal restrictions on this authority. In Iraq, the Iraqi government may conclude international agreements that grant the regional government the authority to represent Iraq in negotiations and sign agreements in specific fields. Thus, the regional government’s authority is expanded, although international treaties may also limit or define its powers in a particular way. Keywords: federal regions, treaties, authority, federal government, international law.