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Obama warns of U.S. action as jihadists push on Baghdad

President Barack Obama on Thursday threatened U.S. military strikes in Iraq against Sunni Islamist militants who have surged out of the north to menace Baghdad and want to establish their own state in Iraq and Syria. Iraqi Kurdish forces took advantage of the chaos to take control of the oil hub of Kirkuk as the troops of the Shi’ite-led government abandoned posts, alarming Baghdad’s allies both in the West and in neighboring Shi’ite regional power Iran. "I don’t rule out anything because we do have a stake in making sure that these jihadists are not getting a permanent foothold in either Iraq or Syria," Obama said at the White House when asked whether he was contemplating air strikes. Officials later stressed that ground troops would not be sent in. Obama was looking at "all options" to help Iraq’s leaders, who took full control when the U.S. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Obama Won’t Rule Out U.S. Airstrikes to Aid Iraq’s Army

President Barack Obama said he won’t rule out using airstrikes to help Iraq’s government beat back Islamist militants who’ve seized cities and threatened to re-ignite a sectarian war in OPEC’s second-largest oil producer. Government forces are seeking to dislodge fighters from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant from cities north of Baghdad after they overran army positions in Mosul this week and advanced on the Iraqi capital. Clashes continued today between the sides in former President Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Baghdad and in the surrounding countryside, which consists of farmland with a Sunni-Muslim majority. Three years after the U.S. withdrew forces from Iraq , the army of the Shiite-led government has collapsed in many areas when confronted by the radical Sunni forces, threatening the stability of oil production in the north of the country. Militants seized the town of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iraq Insurgency Risks Biggest Source of New OPEC Oil, IEA Says

The Islamist insurgency in Iraq highlights the risks to oil supply from a nation forecast to provide about 60 percent of OPEC’s output growth in the rest of this decade, the International Energy Agency said. Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul Kareem al-Luaibi speculated yesterday that U.S. planes may bomb his nation’s north as militants linked to al-Qaeda, who captured the city of Mosul this week, moved south toward Baghdad . The country’s crude output capacity will increase by more than 1.2 million barrels a day in the six years through 2019, the Paris-based IEA estimated in its monthly oil market report today. “While Iraq’s production potential is huge, so are the political hurdles it is facing – and nothing provides a clearer example of that risk than the military campaign,” the IEA said. “Concerning as the latest events in Iraq may be, they might not for now, if the conflict […]

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IEA Says Iraqi Oil Supplies Aren't at Immediate Risk

The International Energy Agency said Friday Iraqi oil supplies aren’t at immediate risk, though the return of oil exports from the country’s north look increasingly elusive. The oil market has been focused on events in Iraq since Islamist militants seized control of the northern city of Mosul Tuesday. Crude prices shot higher this week, climbing to their highest level since September as news emerged that the militants had made rapid gains across northern Iraq, raising concerns about oil supply. Iraqi oil supply is crucial to meeting growing global oil demand in the coming years, with the IEA predicting roughly 60% of the growth in oil production capacity from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in the next decade will come from Iraq. However, in its closely watched oil market report, the IEA said that provided the conflict in Iraq doesn’t spread further, it is unlikely […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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IEA Says Iraqi Oil Supplies Aren’t at Immediate Risk

The International Energy Agency said Friday Iraqi oil supplies aren’t at immediate risk, though the return of oil exports from the country’s north look increasingly elusive. The oil market has been focused on events in Iraq since Islamist militants seized control of the northern city of Mosul Tuesday. Crude prices shot higher this week, climbing to their highest level since September as news emerged that the militants had made rapid gains across northern Iraq, raising concerns about oil supply. Iraqi oil supply is crucial to meeting growing global oil demand in the coming years, with the IEA predicting roughly 60% of the growth in oil production capacity from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in the next decade will come from Iraq. However, in its closely watched oil market report, the IEA said that provided the conflict in Iraq doesn’t spread further, it is unlikely […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Kurdish forces step into security void in disputed Kirkuk

Beaming Kurdish fighters were dropped by the busload on the outskirts of Kirkuk on Thursday, eager to defend a city they say is on its way to becoming part of their autonomous region after the Iraqi army left. “The Iraqi army didn’t argue, they didn’t fight. They left behind their weapons. They didn’t even take their uniforms,” said Tayeb Younis, a young member of the peshmerga, the autonomous Kurdish region’s forces. […]

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Turkey: Baghdad may lose oil row

A Turkish energy official said Thursday any sale of oil from the semiautonomous Kurdish north of Iraq would get consent from international arbiters. United Emblem , the latest tanker to leave the Turkish port of Ceyhan loaded with Kurdish oil, was heading west Thursday toward Sicily. United Leadership , which left the Turkish port in May, is parked off the coast of Morocco. The Iraqi government filed a case against the semiautonomous Kurdish government over the exports, arguing the Kurds had violated the national constitution. A senior official in the Turkish Energy Ministry told Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah the Iraqi central government may lose the case. Ankara is "pretty sure" the courts would rule against Baghdad, he said. The Kurdistan Regional Government last week issued a statement saying its oil policies were "fully in line with the federal constitution of Iraq." Washington said it sided with the central government […]

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New Exxon-Turkey contracts bolster Kurdish export plans

New Exxon-Turkey contracts bolster Kurdish export plans A night view of the rig drilling ExxonMobil’s Maseif-1 well at the Pirmam block in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region. (PATRICK OSGOOD/Iraq Oil Report) This spring, as U.S. diplomats worked to broker a temporary solution to the oil disputes between Iraq’s federal government and the autonomous Kurdistan region, the largest American oil company was quietly making a contrasting pitch. ExxonMobil was in negotiations with the state-owned Turkish Energy Company (TEC), which was keen to take a stake in the super-major’s six exploration contracts in Kurdistan. But the talks weren’t just about the contracts, according to two people involved in the de… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription or sign up for a free trial .

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Why higher Iran oil exports are not roiling nuclear deal

At first glance, Iran appears to have exported more oil than allowed under a nuclear agreement with major powers, but rather than complaining, U.S. officials argue Tehran is skating just inside the deal’s ambiguous limits. Iran’s higher exports reflect its exploitation of a loophole in U.S. law that allows its customers to buy condensates, a very light oil, without fear of U.S. sanctions. Rising gifts of crude oil to Syria are not covered by the deal. The major powers and Iran resume talks in Vienna on Monday aimed at reaching a comprehensive deal by July 20 for Iran to curtail its nuclear program in exchange for the easing of economic sanctions that have crippled its economy. With officials on all sides saying it will be hard to strike a final deal in the next five weeks, critics argue that whether Iran and its customers are respecting […]

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Iran Says Parties to Nuclear Deal Are 'Far' Apart

A comprehensive nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers is "within reach" but the two sides are still "very far" apart on some issues, Iran’s deputy foreign minister said Thursday. Iran and the six powers—the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Russia and China—are seeking to seal a comprehensive nuclear deal by July 20. An agreement would seek to address international concerns about Iran’s nuclear ambitions in exchange for eventually lifting tight sanctions on Tehran. Speaking at the European Council on Foreign Relations event in Rome, Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister and pointman in the nuclear talks said "negotiations are now in a very critical stage." "There are still gaps. We need hard work, wisdom and creativity to bridge the gaps," he said. "A deal is within reach." If Iran and the six-power group fail to reach a deal by July 20, they could agree to extend the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple