Yakima

UNEEK, thank you so much for putting this together. It was great to read!

Prayers going out for Scott and your family.

Prayers coming Alex's way!

Thanks Yota and Stryker for the breakdown!

May God keep watch over your hubby and keep him safe.

Thanks for the breakdown Stryker!

Thanks Bravo and thank you to all our brave servicemen, women and their families.

You're in my thoughts and prayers. You'll be fine. -Kathy

Thanks Yota! Great news!

Kurdistan to increase oil production as federal government agrees to pay Iraq's dues 31/03/2012 13:27 BAGHDAD, March 31 (AKnews) - The Kurdistan Region is set to increase its oil production to 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) after the federal government decided to pay Iraq's dues to the foreign companies operating in the region. Furat al-Sharei from the Oil and Energy Commission in the Iraqi Council of Representatives said today that the Erbil government will urge the oil companies operating in the Kurdistan Region to raise their production according to the agreement signed with the Iraqi government after Baghdad pays its dues. "The commission is working to end the disputes between Erbil and Baghdad legally in order to organize the export of oil during the next phase in which Iraq seeks to export three million barrels per day," said al-Sharei. Iraq's Finance Minister Rafi al-Issawi said in a press conference on the sidelines of the Arab summit in Baghdad that the Iraqi government allocated 650bn IQD ($558m) within the 2012 budget to pay the oil companies operating in the Kurdistan Region. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) threatened the federal government on March 26 of stopping its oil exports if Baghdad did not pay the dues of the production companies in the region. "The Ministry of Natural Resources has decided to reduce the exports to 50,000 barrels per day, warning that it will stop completely the production within a month in the absence of payments," the KRG said at the time. The Iraqi Oil Ministry warned the Kurdistan Region on March 13 about major losses in the state treasury due to the region's decreasing exports. The ministry pointed out that the region was exporting 65,000 bpd and asked it to fulfill its commitment to export 175,000 bpd in line with the 2012 budget. The Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs Hussain al-Shahristani revealed in September last year about the decline in crude oil exports from the Kurdistan Region from 150,000 bpd to 50,000 through the Iraqi-Turkish tube. Al-Shahristani demanded the contracts in the region to be transparent and not "behind closed doors", stating that the contracts were not submitted to the central government. By Jaafar al-Wannan RN/DM/AKnews http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/2/298849/

This site doesn't seem the same the past couple of days without Stryker, Yota, Carello and JNT. I hope they come back. Sure do miss their posts!

Thanks fnbplanet,I think you're right!!

Thanks for the article Tony!

Arab League chief arrives in Iraq for summit By Agence France-Presse March 25, 2012, 1:14 pm BAGHDAD: Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby arrived in Baghdad on Sunday ahead of this week's Arab summit in the Iraqi capital, the first to be held here in more than 20 years. "This is a summit for Iraq," Al-Araby said in remarks aired on state broadcaster Iraqiya TV. "The whole world is watching the summit and looking forward to the resolutions it will pass," he added. The summit, which runs from Tuesday to Thursday, is expected to tackle the ongoing conflict in Syria, the impact of regional Arab Spring revolts, as well as structural reforms to the 22-member Arab League. In its preparations for the gathering, Iraq has deployed thousands of extra policemen and soldiers and spent $500 million refurbishing hotels, summit venues and some infrastructure in the capital. http://www.thedailynewsegypt.com/region/arab-league-chief-arrives-in-iraq-for-summit.html

Sarge, you are in my prayers. Keep the faith. Sorry to hear Stryker might not come back. I hope he will. He is one of the few I enjoy reading. He contributed so much to this site and I know most of us will miss his insight.