The Prime Minister of the Kurdish government, Masrur Barzani, wrote on the X platform that Kurdistan will enable oil exports “as soon as possible, in light of the exceptional circumstances the country is facing.”
The agreement with the Kurds is crucial
Kurdistan’s autonomy, established after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein and guaranteed in the 2005 constitution, remains a key element of these decisions. This solution requires redirecting the raw material from the south of Iraq, from where it was previously exported by tankers, to the north – to the pipeline established on the initiative of Irbil and Ankara and put into operation in 2013.
The statement came after the Iraqi Oil Ministry accused the Kurdistan authorities of not wanting to make the pipeline available as an alternative export route. On Sunday, Kurdistan rejected these accusations, pointing to unresolved problems in the oil sector. Tensions with Baghdad were also deepened by the introduction of an electronic customs system, which was perceived in Erbil as limiting Kurdistan’s autonomy.
When will crude oil exports resume?
Who announced the resumption of oil exports?
What are the reasons for resuming oil exports?
What did the Prime Minister of the Kurdish government say about oil exports?
Before the war began, Iraq produced approximately 4.3 million barrels of oil per day, most of which was exported by sea. Oil production from oil fields in southern Iraq, where most exports come from, has fallen by 70% to 1.3 million barrels a day, sources told Reuters on March 8.
After Israel and the US started war against Iran on February 28, Tehran retaliated by launching missile and drone attacks on Israel and the Persian Gulf countries, and blocked shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately 20 percent of the world’s exports are transported. world oil, including from Iraq.
