The Iraqi government states that the 2007 oil and gas law will be amended, in agreement by all parties, in order to settle disputes between Bagdad and Kurdistan.
Below is an article published by PressTV:
Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region is ready to restart negotiations with Baghdad to end political disputes, focusing on the row over oil, Iraqi deputy prime minister says.
Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Rowsch Nuri Shaways, who is a Kurd, said on Thursday that he sees signs of progress in talks between the Baghdad government and Kurdish authorities and that a long-delayed oil law to hand Kurdistan region more say in managing energy resources would be at the heart of the negotiations, Reuters news agency reported.
He also said that Kurdistan authorities believe that part of the dispute can be ended by passing an amended 2007 draft of an oil and gas law, which all parties had agreed to as part of broader power-sharing among Shia, Sunni and Kurdish blocks.
"Approving this draft and adding some amendments which are agreed on by all parties is the proper way to resolve this," the deputy prime minister, one of the go-betweens for talks between Baghdad and Kurdistan, said.
Shaways also said that Kurdish officials have met with the head of the Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shia National Alliance, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, for preliminary talks and that the meeting's results convinced them to see room for progress.
It is believed that the positive tone of Shaways is a sign that Baghdad and the self-governed Kurdistan are moving forward to end the disputes over oil, territory and power sharing.
Kurdistan has tested Baghdad's resolve for months by signing deals with foreign oil majors, such as Exxon and Chevron, contracts the Baghdad government rejects as illegal and part of a Kurdish push for more autonomy.
Baghdad has repeatedly said that all oil contracts in the country, including in the Kurdish region, must go through the central government.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote