Troubled Oil Begins to Surface

[lovuian]

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35203

ARBIL, Oct 24 (IPS) - Through a steadily worsening security situation and deepening political divisions, a dispute is now erupting between Kurdish leaders and the Baghdad regime over access to oil resources.

Kurdish authorities and the federal government in Baghdad have exchanged sharply-worded statements recently in their rival claims for control over northern oilfields. The row is expected to intensify after the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in charge of the three northern provinces Arbil, Sulaimaniya and Dohuk presents an oil bill to the regional parliament.

This would then be a basis of claims from the federal government, and an assertion of rights over oil in the north.

In an attempt to calm this growing confrontation U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Kurdish leaders on her last visit to Kurdistan to make concessions to Baghdad on distribution of oil revenues.

Kurdish leaders agreed to share an unspecified portion of their revenues with Baghdad, but they say they will not hand over control of oil wells to the Iraqi oil ministry.
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Kurds are not going to relinguish those oil wells

[dipsydoodle]

1. Under their Constitution,

which was written in effect by the USA, Iraq gets income from existing wells but only royalties from future ones i.e. not yet developed. As the actual reference is to "those oil wells" I take it to mean existing ones and as such that may be the real issue here.