U.S. may oust Maliki over oil, aides fear

[maddezmom]

U.S. may oust Maliki over oil, aides fear
Bill to divide country's petroleum wealth, one of the benchmarks for success, must be passed by summer
By Steven Hurst and Qassim Abdul-Zahra
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BAGHDAD - Prime Minister Nouri Maliki fears the Americans will torpedo his government if parliament does not pass a law to fairly divvy up the country's oil wealth among Iraqis by the end of June, close associates of the leader said Tuesday.

The legislature has not even taken up the draft measure, which is only one of several U.S. benchmarks that are seen by Maliki as key to continued American support, a crucial need for the survival of his troubled administration.

The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Aside from the oil law, the associates said, American officials have told the Shiite Muslim prime minister that they want an Iraqi government in place by the end of the year acceptable to the country's Sunni Arab neighbors, particularly Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt.

"They have said it must be secular and inclusive," one Maliki associate said.

more: http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/news/nation/16900531.htm?source=rss&channel=cctimes_nation


So much for sovereignty :eyes:


Two key Iraq parties oppose oil law
BAGHDAD, March 13 (UPI) -- Two Iraqi political parties, including one of the former prime minister, said the draft hydrocarbons law should be tabled until the security situation improves.

"We believe that the time is not right for dealing with this issue. We should, above all, deal with security matters before debating this draft," said Hussein al-Falluji, a member of Parliament representing the Iraqi Accordance Front, a Sunni party.

"Socio-political and security circumstances do not allow such a step now, as the draft would allow investment companies to re-wield power over Iraqi oil," Falluji told the Voices of Iraq news agency.

After nearly a year of debate, negotiators from the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government agreed to a tentative law governing the country's 115 billion barrels of proven reserves.

more;http://www.upi.com/Energy/view.php?StoryID=20070313-011332-2256r

[Old and In the Way]

1. Hard to believe that Iraq doesn't want to split the oil up amongst

various factions and undercut the value by bidding sales amongst themselves. If I were Iraq, I'd never let the occupiers take my only natural resource of value.

[sinkingfeeling]

2. Well, so much for all that 'Iraq is now a sovereign country' bullsh*t, uh?