IRAN 1981: why Bush will NEVER pull out of Iraq

[yurbud]

Iran Cancels 1954 Oil Pacts
AP. New York Times. Sep 9, 1981.

Iran has canceled all contracts signed with multinational oil companies before the 1979 Islamic revolution, the Iranian Oil Ministry announced today.

The announcement, carried by the official Iranian press agency, said the contracts had been signed with American, British, Dutch and French companies in 1954.

The statement said the companies had ''plundered the oil resources of Iran from 1954 to 1979, while Iran, which is in fact the justified owner of these resources, had only little to gain from the contracts.''

Industry analysts said they believed Iran's announcement was unlikely to have any practical effect on American oil companies that had operated in Iran because no Iranian oil is currently being bought.

Iran's current crude oil production is estimated at 900,000 barrels a day, down from an average of six million daily before the 1979 revolution.

The contracts signed in 1954 were to have lasted 25 years, with three five-year renewal periods. The ministry has formed a board to investigate any claims resulting from the measure and ''follow up the matter, possibly through international circles, until their final settlement and recovery of the legitimate rights of the Iranian people,'' the announcement said.