Iraq hits out at Kurds, Qatar

[DinarCowboy12]

Dubai: In the latest sign of worsening ties between the Iraqi central government and Kurdistan and its Arab neighbours, Baghdad yesterday lambasted the autonomous region's move to allow Sunni Vice-President Tarek Al Hashemi, who faced terror charges, to travel to Qatar and to stop oil exports.

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Hussain Shahristani asked Doha to send Al Hashemi back in what many experts described as part of ongoing tensions between the two sides amid sectarian strains and different approaches to the Syrian crisis.

"Qatar should review its position and send Al Hashemi back to Iraq to stand trial," Shahristani was quoted as saying at a press conference. Qatar's acceptance of Al Hashemi was "unacceptable", he added.

Shahristani said Kurdistan committed a "clear challenge to law and justice" by allowing Al Hashemi to leave the country. Al Hashemi had been holed up in Kurdistan since last December, when Iraqi officials accused him, a day after the US troop withdrawal, of running death squads against Shiites, government officials and security forces. He denies the charges, which he says are politically motivated. Kurdish officials have repeatedly rejected Baghdad's requests to hand over the vice-president.

Al Hashemi swiftly rejected Baghdad's demand upon arrival in Doha. He told AFP, "There has not been a judicial decision against me by any court, and the demand does not respect Article 93 of the constitution, which provides me with immunity."

Al Hashemi's case has divided Iraqi politicians.

"His trip to Qatar is his right as a vice-president," Talal Al Zoubai, an Iraqi MP from the Iraqiya bloc, said.

"The accused is innocent until he is proven guilty…. And we are confident, as an Iraqi bloc and all the national parties, that the man is innocent and far from these accusations… it is a political vendetta," he told Gulf News.

Other Arab political experts believe Al Hashemi's trip to Qatar is likely to deepen already existing tensions between Iran and the neighbouring Gulf states.

"There is an attempt at media escalation by the Iraqi government towards Qatar in particular," said Mohammad Ezz Al Arab, a researcher at the Arab and regional unit at the Cairo-based Al Ahram Strategic Studies Centre. "This is only one of the cases," between Iraq and the Arab states, he told Gulf News.

Oil exports halted

Sectarian tension, trading accusations of interfering in each other's internal affairs, Baghdad's strong relations with Iran, and its support for the Syrian regime of Bashar Al Assad, who is criticised by the Gulf countries for crushing the year-long protests, are among the main reasons for the ongoing tensions, added Ezz Al Arab.

Baghdad also criticised Kurdistan for stopping its crude oil exports on Sunday after arguing the central government had withheld $1.5 billion owed to foreign oil companies working in the region.

Link - http://gulfnews.com/news/region/iraq-hits-out-at-kurds-qatar-1.1003412

[Butifldrm]

Everyone even the Gurus are all pointing their fingers at Maliki, but Prime Minister Hussain Shahristani is a very powerful man. He is the master of HCL and the constitutionality of Erbil, in which his stance on previous oil contracts have enraged the Kurds. We all know Maliki made a deal with the Devil to obtain confirmation as Prime Minister of Iraq. The deal was made in Erbil and the Kurds were the King makers. Now, Maliki knows the constitution forward and backward, he helped write it, but still he made the deal and now cannot deliver. So, that puts Maliki in a very precarious situation with the Kurds and believe me they are still in control. Allawi, Hashemi, and Mutlaq have all aligned themselves with the Kurds for that reason. Who's right or who's wrong, I shall not pass judgement, but I don't see this political stand off being solved without some kind of compromise from both sides. I would like to see Iraq as a Unified Country, but unless I'm reading smoke, things may take a bit longer to come together.

[uncirculd]

Everyone even the Gurus are all pointing their fingers at Maliki, but Prime Minister Hussain Shahristani is a very powerful man. He is the master of HCL and the constitutionality of Erbil, in which his stance on previous oil contracts have enraged the Kurds. We all know Maliki made a deal with the Devil to obtain confirmation as Prime Minister of Iraq. The deal was made in Erbil and the Kurds were the King makers. Now, Maliki knows the constitution forward and backward, he helped write it, but still he made the deal and now cannot deliver. So, that puts Maliki in a very precarious situation with the Kurds and believe me they are still in control. Allawi, Hashemi, and Mutlaq have all aligned themselves with the Kurds for that reason. Who's right or who's wrong, I shall not pass judgement, but I don't see this political stand off being solved without some kind of compromise from both sides. I would like to see Iraq as a Unified Country, but unless I'm reading smoke, things may take a bit longer to come together.

wow, yes it looks that way.

[Butifldrm]

Shahristani Accuses Kurdistan of Oil Smuggling

Posted on 03 April 2012. Tags: KRG, Kurdistan, oil contracts, oil exports

The ongoing dispute between Iraq’s central government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) reached new heights on Monday as Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister for Energy, Hussain al-Shahristani (pictured), accused the northern region of smuggling rather than meeting its export obligations.

According to Reuters, Shahristani told reporters:

“Most of the crude produced in the region is being smuggled through borders and mainly to Iran … We have discussed with Iran and Turkey about controlling joint borders to stop smuggling crude.“

The KRG decided on Sunday to halt oil exports from the region, which had previously been running at around 100,000 bpd, accusing the central government in Baghdad of failing to make payments to companies working in Kurdistan.

http://www.iraq-businessnews.com/2012/04/03/shahristani-accuses-kurdistan-of-oil-smuggling/