The oil majors met at the Iraq Oil, Gas, Petrochemical & Electricity Summit from 2 – 4 September 2007 in Dubai to discuss “the future of Iraq’s abundant energy resources.” Attending were US puppets, described as “some of the most important figures from Iraq’s energy sector.” Also attending were the waiting vultures, BP, Exxon, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Lukoil, Statoil, Marathon Oil, Total, Shell, Kuwait National Petroleum, Annadarko, Schlumberger, ABB, ONGC, General Electric, Cummins Power, Mitsui, Aegis, ArmorGroup, Janussian, Control Risks Group, Unity, Hart, Olive Security, GardaWorld and Triple Canopy.

The history of the Iraq Oil law is sordid. An outstanding article by A.K. Gupta, The Great Iraq Heist, outlines the US imperial ownership of Iraq via Bush Executive orders, through his Arch-Deacon-of Hades, Paul Bremer.

Since March 2003, a series of executive orders by Bush, UN documents, and regulations and orders issued by Iraqi Proconsol Paul Bremer have put the U.S. in absolute control of the state of Iraq, its oil industry and monies, all while lifting barriers to repatriating profits . …

On the same day UN resolution 1483 passed, May 22, Bush signed Executive Order 13303 granting blanket immunity to any U.S. corporation dealing with Iraqi oil through 2007 . Researcher Jim Vallette, who stumbled across the order in the Federal Register, says it “unilaterally declares Iraqi oil to be the unassailable province of U.S. corporations.... In other words, if ExxonMobil or ChevronTexaco touch Iraqi oil, it will be immune from legal proceedings in the United States.” …

So in a little more than two months the Bush administration staked claim to and received UN approval to every significant asset and resource Iraq has in the world, established sole power over how to spend Iraq’s oil money, and indemnifies its corporate cronies from liability.

One can thus see the urgency emanating from the White House concerning “Benchmarks” – resulting in ‘troop surge,’ an Allawi (?) coup, and various “reports” on the ‘situation in Iraq, all differing but the main thrust being failure.

Index Research started documenting these developments, first in March 2006, in PNAC: Rebuilding America's Defenses - A Biopsy on Imperialism; Part II: "Special Interests" - The Persian Gulf (07.03.06) . This included the vitally important Platform document by Greg Muttitt, Crude Designs.



From this period on, mainstream media had no excuse to represent the “sharing” Iraq oil agreement without also demonstrating that Iraq actually had NO ‘share’ in her own oil. However, this omission is exactly what happened - and frequently continues to happen.

Index Research continued to document the daily Iraq oil crisis as the situation became more acute in The Iraq Oil Crunch: Index Timeline , which tracks the drama through 12 May 2007.

The Iraqi parliament is said to be meeting again, after a month’s recess, on Tuesday.

Appendix ONE follows the development of the oil crisis from 12 May until the present moment, with oil companies and the US government waiting for the kill. This desperate country, destroyed by the US government with the help of "the coalition of the willing" deserves its own oil. Now.


APPENDIX ONE: IRAQ OIL CRISIS 12 MAY - 3 SEPTEMBER 2007


Leading Iraqi Labor Leaders to Tour U.S. During their visit, they will address members of Congress, labor audiences and the general public about the impact the U.S. occupation has had on the labor movement and daily lives of working people in Iraq. They will speak about reconstruction and will explain why the labor movement is opposed to the proposed hydrocarbon law favored by the Bush administration and oil corporations which would put foreign oil corporations in effective control of 2/3 of Iraq's undeveloped oil reserves. They will also describe the likely consequences if the occupation continues, what might occur if it abruptly ends and prospects for a stable, democratic, non-sectarian future for Iraq.
Their tour is cosponsored by U.S. Labor Against the War (USLAW), United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ), and the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC).
Washington, DC: June 4-7
Los Angeles: June 7-10
San Jose, Santa Cruz: June 10
Berkeley/San Francisco: June 11-12
Boston: June 13-15
New York City: June 16-19
Philadelphia: June 19
Chicago/Milwaukee: June 20-23
Washington, DC: June 24-26
Atlanta: June 27-28

Iraqi Oil Workers address US Congress
Iraq occupation Focus No. 69. ‘Hasan Jum’a Awwad, Head of the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions, has urged Congress “not to link withdrawal with the oil law”. In an Open Letter, he wrote: “Everyone knows that the oil law does not serve the Iraqi people, and that it serves Bush, his supporters and the foreign companies at the expense of the Iraqi people who have been wronged and deprived of their right to their oil despite enduring all difficulties. The general public in Iraq is totally convinced that Bush wants to rush the promulgation of the oil law so as to be leaving Iraq with a victory of sorts, because his project is failing every day and the occupation is collapsing in all parts of Iraq.” ‘

Iraqis resist U.S. pressure to enact oil law
13.05.07. LA Times. It has not even reached parliament, but the oil law that U.S. officials call vital to ending Iraq's civil war is in serious trouble among Iraqi lawmakers, many of whom see it as a sloppy document rushed forward to satisfy Washington's clock.

US Imperial Ambitions Thwart Iraqi’s Peace Plans
12.05.07. J. Holland, Alternet. Iraq’s resistance groups have offered a series of peace plans that might put an end tohe country’s sectarian violence, but they’ve been ignored by the U.S.-led coalition because they’re opposed to foreign occupation and privatization of oil.

Petition. Oppose the Theft of Iraq’s Oil.
The Iraqi Parliament will soon vote on a US-backed law that could hand too much oil revenue and control to foreign corporations. The Iraqi Parliament will soon vote on a US-backed law that could hand too much oil revenue and control to foreign corporations. A Sunni, Shia and Kurd Parliamentarian are planning to stand together and present this petition to the Iraqi Parliament. They want us to help them show that the world supports Iraq's right to its own oil and its own future. Sign petition to help Avaaz.org reach 100,000 signatures before they present it.

Kucinich to Speak for Full Hour on House Floor on Iraq Oil Law -- Watch C-Span
23.05.07. David Swanson, Op Ed. This will be the first time in Congress that there has been a full discussion of the covert efforts to accomplish privatization of Iraq's oil through the supplemental spending bill.

Video. Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich: "Privatizing Iraq's Oil is Theft!" 7 Min. Rep. Kucinich explained how the proposed Bill, now pending before the U.S. Congress, via its benchmarks, will provide for the privatization of Iraqi oil. It requires the regime in Iraq to pass a law called, "The Hydrocarbon Act." If they refuse to do so over a billion dollars in reconstruction funds will be blocked by the Bush-Cheney administration, he claimed. - Unless the scheme is stopped, Rep. Kucinich predicted, we will be looking at an Iraqi War "going on forever!"

Deadline looms on unseettled oil issue
25.05.07. Washington Times.

Curse of Oil and Iraq’s Disintegration
25.05.07. Dr. Mustafa Alani, Arab News/uruknet. ...During the last four years, news about the escalating violence in Iraq has dominated media headlines across the world. Media reports have been full of the news of violence in the by now well-known hotspots like Baghdad, Fallujah, Ramadi, and Diyala. However, there is very little news about the violence endured by Iraqi people living in other regions and cities of the country. The daily violent struggle in the two oil-rich cities of Kirkuk and ! Basra has a special meaning for Iraqi people and is of significance for the state (...) Basra has been effectively out of the central government’s control since the invasion of the country, and it is unlikely that government’s authority can be restored in the near future. The Baghdad government is paralyzed, and unable or unwilling to stop the sectarian "cleansing" in Basra, or the ongoing fight for control of the province and its resources. The rival Shiite political groups, small and big — many depending on support coming from across the international borders — are working hard to secure some formula that could guarantee a partial or complete separation of Basra from the rest of the state. A de-facto separation is now in existence, which means that Basra and its oil wealth are at the mercy of ambitious and ruthless local warlords who have no consideration for or attachment to the country or its national interests...

What Congress Really Approved: Benchmark No. 1: Privatizing Iraq's Oil for US Companies
26.05.07. Ann Wright, Truth out. Retired Army Colonel Ann Wright says the supplemental bill Congress passed to continue funding the Iraq war is really about "stealing Iraq's oil - the second largest reserves in the world. The "benchmark," or goal, the Bush administration has been working on furiously since the US invaded Iraq is privatization of Iraq's oil. Now they have Congress blackmailing the Iraqi Parliament and the Iraqi people: no privatization of Iraqi oil, no reconstruction funds."

“On Thursday, May 24, the US Congress voted to continue the war in Iraq. The members called it "supporting the troops." I call it stealing Iraq's oil - the second largest reserves in the world. The "benchmark," or goal, the Bush administration has been working on furiously since the US invaded Iraq is privatization of Iraq's oil. Now they have Congress blackmailing the Iraqi Parliament and the Iraqi people: no privatization of Iraqi oil, no reconstruction funds.”

When Oil and Water Mix
26.05.07. Soraya Sepahpour-Ulrich, ICH. ‘ America's relentless drive to dominate the Middle East and its oil, blends well with Israel's insatiable appetite for water and unstoppable expansion. It is said that oil and water do not mix - but when they do, it becomes a lethal concoction with no easy solution. The fatal blend engulfing the Middle East today seems to have no end in sight other than darker clouds showering more innocent blood.’

JUNE 2007

Was Iraq invaded to boost oil prices? Value of Exxon reserves rose by $666bn
01.06.07. S. Ross, ICH blog.

Iraqi Oil Workers On Strike
04.06.07. Downing St.org. Workers began the strike at 6.30 this morning by shutting two 14" pipelines carrying oil and gas products inside Iraq.

Congressman Kucinich to Receive Statement By Iraqi Oil Workers Union
05.06.07. Common Dreams. U.S. Government's Role in Privatizing Iraqi

Iraqi Oil Ministry Hopes To Have Oil Law Signed Within 1 Month
05.06.07. Reuters. The Iraqi government said Tuesday it hopes the country's hydrocarbons law will be signed soon

Oil Strikers Met by Iraqi Troops
07.06.07. UPI / Truthout. On the third day of an oil strike in southern Iraq, the Iraqi military surrounded oil workers and the prime minister issued arrest warrants for the union leaders, sparking an outcry from supporters and international unions.

Iraqis to U.S. Congress: Back off oil law
08.06.07. Earthtimes. WASHINGTON, June 8 Iraqi union leaders met with a U.S. congressman they say is their biggest friend in Washington, urging a united front against Iraq's draft oil law.

Faleh Abood Umara, general secretary of the Iraq Federation of Oil Unions, and Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein, president of the Electrical Utility Workers Union, called the proposed law a theft of Iraq's oil.

U.S. Ignorant of Iraq Oil Law
15.06.07. B. Lando, Monsters and Critics.

Nobel Laureates Condemn Iraq Oil Law. US.
20.06.07. UPI. Six Nobel Peace Prize Laureates weighed in on the proposed Iraq oil law, worried Iraq's citizens will lose out, and urging the United States to back off.

Iraq oil law deadline approaches
20.06.07. ameinfo. The Iraq National Oil Company would have exclusive control of just 17 of Iraq's 80 known oil fields, leaving two thirds of yet to be exploited areas open potentially to foreign control.

Iraq parl't to sit longer to focus on key laws
23.06.07. Reuters. Iraq's parliament voted on Saturday to cut its summer holiday by a month to give lawmakers more time to pass a package of laws Washington views as key to fostering national reconciliation between Iraq's warring sects. The move is likely to be welcomed by the United States, although the draft laws have yet to be presented to parliament for debate. Analysts say the Shi'ite, Kurd and Sunni Arab political blocs have shown little willingness to compromise on key issues.

Six Nobel Peace Prize Recipients Oppose Iraq Oil Law
26.06.07. A. Juhasz, US Labor Against War. 'While the Bush administration has repeatedly claimed that the war in Iraq is not about oil, U.S. oil corporations are poised to take control over the 115 billion barrels of known oil reserves - 10 percent of the world total. The Bush administration's proposed new oil law for Iraq, set to go before Iraq's Parliament this month, would transform Iraq's oil industry from a nationalized model to a commercial model that is much more open to U.S. corporate control. Its provisions allow much (if not most) of Iraq's oil revenues to flow out of Iraq and into the pockets of international oil companies. At NWI's First International Conference women from the US and Iraq educated participants on the perils of this proposed law and the Nobel Peace Prize laureates signed the following statement. ...'

JULY 2007

Maliki’s government on verge of collapse
01.07.07. Kareem Zair, Azzaman / uruknet. The government of Nouri al-Maliki is not only losing its control of the country but also its role as a representative administration. .. The coalition holds 44 seats in the 275-member parliament.

Iraq takes step closer to landmark oil law
03.07.07. Reuters. Iraq's cabinet approved changes to a draft hydrocarbon law on Tuesday and sent it to parliament for immediate debate, taking a big step towards meeting a key political target set by the United States.

Sadr bloc joins Sunnis in rejecting Iraq oil law
05.07.07. AFP / aljazeera. Followers of Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Thursday joined a growing chorus of Sunni Arab, Kurdish and Shiite opposition to a draft oil law backed by Washington.

Those So-Called Oil Contracts in Iraq
06.07.07. JEAN GERARD, Counterpunch. 'So-called "oil contracts" have been on the table of the Iraqi Parliament for months, and the fluff of lies printed about them in U..S. media is nauseating. Every report I have been able to find in the general media has been long on inferences and short on facts. The result is that the average American knows nothing about them, and even those of us who try to follow important policy matters cannot find out more than the simple assertion that there are such things as Production Sharing Agreements, and that their signing is one of the "benchmarks" the US has put up as a requirement for our withdrawal of military forces.'

Iraqi lawmaker quits energy panel over oil law
07.07.07. Reuters. A member of Iraq's parliamentary energy committee quit on Saturday in protest over a draft oil law, which Washington hopes will [help ease] sic violence between Iraq's warring Shi'ite and Sunni Arabs.

Oil law to plunge country into more chaos
09.07.07. Saad Abbas, Azzaman/uruknet. Disappointment will be the only fruit that we are going to reap from the new oil law as we did from all other U.S.-sponsored 'milestones’. Instead of "a gift to all the Iraqi people" as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki described the draft oil law his government approved a few days ago, there are clear signals that the bill will turn into 'poison’ for Iraq as a nation. It is an oppressive bill that Maliki and his ministers signed and passed to parliament for approval.

Opposition to America's Oil Grab Is Unifying Iraqis
12.07.07. Alternet.
Video Iraq: Mixing Oil & BloodA controversial new Middle East oil law could lead to the "disintegration" of Iraq as a nation state. Two of the region's most respected commentators, including the co-author of the new Iraq Oil Law and a former oil minister, have each expressed their "gravest concern" at what they believe could happen within their country if the law is approved in its current form.

KBR

KBR Shares Hit New Highs on New Business.
13.07.07. AP / Forbes. Already last month, KBR was one of three companies awarded respective $5 billion contracts from the Army to provide food and shelter to U.S. troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait. ... On the military side of the business, the U.S. Navy on Wednesday awarded KBR an $8.5 million contract boost for additional services for personnel at two Iraqi oil platforms. The company will perform the work in waters off the coast of Iraq through November 2007.

Bush's optimism is impossible to square with the situation in Iraq.
13.07.07. P. Cockburn, Independent. Oil pipelines are sabotaged by insurgents and punctured by thieves. "In just one stretch of pipeline between Baghdad and Baiji, we found 1,488 holes," the Oil Minister, Hussein Shahristani, told the Iraqi parliament, speaking of a importantpipe that brings oil product to the capital from Baiji refinery. He added: "It doesn't function as a pipeline... it's more like a sieve."

MPs want to put draft oil law to referendum.
14.07.07. Azzaman. Iraqi legislators opposing the new draft law for the exploration of oil and the distribution of oil revenues say its passage should be determined by the Iraqi people. ... The fields of Basra ( (where UK troops are) and Missan hold more than 65% of the country's proven reserves estimated at 115 billion barrels.

Benchmark Bogie: A guide to the stuggle over Iraq's Oil.
14.07.07. A. Juhatsz, Alternet. "The law would change Iraq's oil system from a nationalized model -- all but closed to U.S. oil companies -- to a privatized model open to foreign corporate control. At least two-thirds of Iraq's oil would be open to foreign oil companies under terms that they usually only dream about, including 30-year-long contracts. (For details of the law, see my March 2007 New York Times Op-Ed, "Whose Oil Is It, Anyway?") ... With few exceptions, the American press has adopted the adminstration's language and continually and virtually exclusively refers to the oil law as a revenue sharing measure -- ignoring completely the fact that Iraqis would only be able to share the revenues left over after the foreign oil companies received their very sizeable cut." (Ed: this sentence is also applicable to The Guardian-who should know better. In two recent articles, they have not mentioned the US 'cut" of Iraqi oil. .)

Fight for control: Iraq oil under pressure.
15.07.07. H. Steward, Observer. Long before coalition troops arrived in Iraq in 2003, anti-war campaigners warned that George Bush's real motive was to grab its oil reserves. While the violence continues to rage, workers in the devastated country's energy industry are warning that America and Britain are pressing Baghdad to hand over control of its oil industry to foreign multinationals.

Iraqi lawmaker quits energy panel over oil law.
16.07.07. US Labor Against War. Usama al-Nujeyfi told a small news conference that the proposal would cede too much control to global companies and "ruin the country's future". He vowed to work to defeat the draft in parliament.

Hundreds of Iraqis Protest Oil Law in Basra.
16.07.07. US Labor Against War. Basra, Iraq Today hundreds of Iraqis, led by the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions (IFOU), took to the streets of Basra to demand that the Iraqi Parliament reject the proposed Oil Law. [1] Simultaneous demonstrations took place in Amara and Nassiryya. Local governate officials made statements in support of the demonstration and, along with the governor of Basra, have committed to sending letters to the Minister of Oil supporting the Union's demands. ...
Forbes described the demonstration as "Dozens of people demonstrated in the southern city of Basra ... " without mentioning the other demonstrations.

Iraq Kurd PM: Swift Oil Law Approval.. See also Bombs kill at least 85 in Kirkuk - Iraq police (16.07.07, Reuters).

US politicians unite on anger over Maliki.
17.07.07. MSNBC. "We have given them their opportunity," she (Mrs. Clinton) said. " They cannot expect to have any more of our aid [sic} unless they begin to do what they must do to take care of themselves. ... An interim US progress report on the war last week declared that Iraq was failing to make satisfactory progress towards a series of political goals, including a law to ensure fair {sic] distribution of oil revenues among rival factions. ... But with Iraqi lawmakers on vacation in August, the chances of a political breakthrough before September appear slim.

"Iraq oil law 'benchmark' likely to be missed, official says.
17,07.07. UPI. The (U.S.-made) benchmark for Iraq's government to pass an oil law is "unfortunate" and will likely be missed, a senior Iraqi official said. "The political environment here (in the United States) impinges directly" on what happens in Baghdad, especially talk of withdrawing troops, the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.

Iraq's new coalition: the insurgents.
18.07.07, Seumas Milne, Guardian / uruknet. Seven of the most important Sunni-led insurgent organisations fighting the US occupation in Iraq have agreed to form a public political alliance with the aim of preparing for negotiations in advance of an American withdrawal, their leaders have told the Guardian. In their first interview with the western media since the US-British invasion of 2003, leaders of three of the insurgent groups - responsible for thousands of attacks against US and Ir! aqi armed forces and police - made clear that they would continue their armed resistance until all foreign troops were withdrawn from Iraq, and denounced al-Qaida for sectarian killings and suicide bombings against civilians (...) Leaders of the three groups - who did not use their real names in the interview - said the new front, which brings together all the main Sunni-based armed organisations except al-Qaida and the Ba'athists, has agreed the main planks of a joint political programme, including a commitment to free Iraq from all foreign troops, rejection of any cooperation with parties involved in the political institutions set up under the occupation, and a declaration that all decisions and agreements made by the US occupation and Iraqi government are null and void...

Iraq: Oil Workers Mount Protest in Basra.
20.07.07. infoshop. The executive bureau of Basra's trade unions organized a large demonstration on Monday, where hundreds of workers called for reconsidering the oil and gas law and the government's recent decision to increase fuel prices.

Iraq Unions Vow Mutiny over Oil Law.
20.07.07. UPI.

Iraqi PM urges parliament to cancel or limit summer break to pass laws seen as crucial by US.
21.07.07. Newspress.

Iraq Oil : Iraq's Ministry of Oil to receive training program from USTDA.
22.07.07. Portal Iraq. The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is funding a $2.5 million multifaceted training program for the Iraqi Ministry of Oil that addresses the issues of management, technical/engineering and human resources development.

Resisting the plans to control Iraq's oil.
20.07.07. S. Assaf, trinicenter. Iraqi union leader Hassan Jumaa Awad recently visited Britain to raise awareness of the US's attempts to grab hold of his country's oil resources. The US wants to get it hands on Iraq's oil wealth and is pressuring the Iraqi government to pass a law that will mortgage the country's future, says Hassan Jumaa Awad, the leader of the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions.

Iraq oil law stalled after break, MPs say.
23.07.07. Earthtimes. BAGHDAD, July 23 Two Iraqi parliamentarians say the controversial law governing Iraq's oil won't be voted on until at least after a planned August recess.

GOVERNMENT LIES Hannah Arendt, in the Origins of Totalitarianism , points out that (fascist / totalitarian) governments frequently lie and then repeat the lies even when they have been exposed as false. With regard to the Iraq (Bremer) oil law, much of MSM have 1) not done their homework or 2) support the Bush spin, and thus keep repeating the false story: that the Iraq law "will divide oil revenues between the provinces." Following are some examples: Secret Report: No Iraq Oil Deal by September. 21.07.07. Brian Ross, ABCNews. A confidential intelligence report prepared for U.S. officials this week concludes a key U.S. benchmark of progress in Iraq, a law to divide oil revenues equitably among the provinces (sic), "will not be agreed by September, even if cosmetic legislation is put in place." Iraqi legislators can't take the heat. 06.08.07. Cynthia Tucker, Baltimore Sun. "I have made it clear to the prime minister and Iraq's other leaders that America's commitment is not open-ended. If the Iraqi government does not follow through on its promises, it will lose the support of the American people - and the Iraqi people," he (Bush) said. / Since then, American officials have identified three of those so-called benchmarks as priorities: passing legislation to share oil proceeds among ethnic groups, including the Kurds.

Shahristani: Iraq oil unions not legit.
25.07.07. Earthtimes. Iraq's [US]oil minister said Iraq's oil unions are not legitimate and have no more standing in the debate over the oil law than an ordinary citizen.

Iraq: Oil and Gas Legislation, Revenue Sharing, and U.S. Policy.
(updated) 26.07.07. CRS Report

Iraq is a mass of contradictions; Oil is at the Center.
28.07.07. B. Lando, alternet.

Iraq parliament adjourns for summer recess without passing key laws.
30.07.07. The Jurist.

Iraq Oil Law in Limbo.
31.07.07. Herald sun / anti-war.com.

Steel Workers Union Leader Writes Congress About Labor Rights and the Oil (theft) Law in Iraq.
31.07.07. The following letter was sent to Congressional and Senatorial leaders by Leo Gerard, President of the United Steel Workers union. This union also represents the oil industry workers in the U.S.

Iraq Oil Ministry: No Dealing with Unions.
31.07.07. B. Lando, alternet.

AUGUST 2007

Pres. Sweeney's Letter to Prime Minister of Iraq About Labor Rights.
02.08.07. US labor against war. US Labor Against the War urges its affiliates, all labor organizations, and individual workers to let the government of Iraq know that the world is watching and will not allow them to continue violating labor rights of Iraqi union members with impunity. But we must also tell the U.S. Congress that its support for a "benchmark" calling for adoption of the Oil (theft) Law makes it an accomplice in this crime.

Good news from Baghdad at last: the oil law has stalled.
03.08.07. J. Steele, Guardian. The panic and distraction of the security crisis should not be used as cover for handing Iraq's wealth to foreigners. the administration - particularly the vice-president, Dick Cheney - and the oil lobby are enraged that the oil law is stalled. The main reason is not that the Iraqi government and parliament are a lazy bunch of Islamist incompetents or narrow-minded sectarians, as is often implied. MPs are studying the law more carefully, and have begun to see it as a major threat to Iraq's national interest regardless of people's religion or sect.

This is the second bit of good news from Iraq. Civil society, trade unions, professional oil experts and the media are stirring on the oil issue and putting their points across to parliament in the way democracy is meant to work. The oil unions have held strikes even at the risk of having leaders and members arrested.

Top Iraq MP: No Oil Law Under Occuptaion.
03.08.07. UPI.

Iraq's wealth in the balance.
04.08.07. Hussein Abdallah, Al-Ahram Weekly/uruknet. The present draft Iraq oil law is virtually guaranteed to betray the vital interests of Iraqis, writes Hussein Abdallah

Iraq [sic] imposes 'Saddam style' ban on oil union.
05.08.07. H. Stewart, Observer. 'This means the union has lost any negotiating rights as regards their terms and conditions, as well as in regard to discussions of the oil law,' said Sami Ramadani of Naftana, the UK-based support committee for the union, who is himself an exile from Saddam's regime. 'The union is definitely defying this, and it has the support of the workers: that's its strength.'

The struggle for Iraq's oil flares up as Kurds open doors to foreign investors.
07.08.07. Guardian. With the Bush administration pressing the Iraqi government to pass a new hydrocarbons law, there are widely voiced assumptions that it will bulldoze the oil industry into privatisation, and that foreign firms - meaning US ones - will unfairly reap the rewards. A survey published yesterday by a group of British and American NGOs suggested most Iraqis oppose plans to open the oilfields to foreign investment.

Iraq says no to oil theft.
07.08.07. John Hilary, uruknet. The population of Iraq want some say in how their country's oil reserves are developed. We must support them. Only two things seem to bridge the sectarian divide in today's Iraq. One is football, as shown in last week's celebrations among Sunnis, Shias and Kurds when the national team beat Saudi Arabia to win the Asian Cup. The other is oil - or, to be precise, how best to use Iraq's massive oil reserves in order to build some form of future prosperity on the ruins of occupation and civil war. / A unique public opinion survey has just been published which asked respondents from all sections of Iraqi society whether they feel the country's oil sector should be opened up to development by multinationals such as Shell, BP and Exxon, or kept under the control of Iraqi public sector companies instead. Eight in 10 believed that wise use of Iraq's oil could still provide some prosperity for them and their children in the future.

Iraqis oppose oil development plans, poll finds.
War on Want. Further setback for US / UK as Iraqis reject oil privatisation. 63% of poll respondents said they would prefer Iraq’s oil to be developed and produced by Iraqi public sector companies rather than foreign companies.

It's Time To Withdraw Iraq's Oil Law.
07.08.07. B Lando, Alternet. Iraq is a bloodbath. Why is Washington in such a hurry to get an oil law passed?

Iraq leadership in disarray as ministers quit Cabinet.
08.08.07. timesonline. Iraq leadership in disarray as ministers quit Cabinet. Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi Prime Minister, is battling to survive a political crisis after losing almost half his Cabinet to boycotts and resignations after a spate of disputes over policy and performance. / In the latest blow, four secularist ministers who are loyal to Ayad Allawi, a former interim Iraqi leader, withdrew from Cabinet meetings, less than a week after the main Sunni bloc quit. Both groups blamed a failure by Mr al-Maliki to respond to demands for political reform.

Total and Chevron agree to work together in Iraq.
09.08.07. businesstimes. Two of the world’s biggest oil companies have signed an agreement to work together on projects in Iraq in the first clear sign that Western energy companies are preparing to enter the country.

Red Rag to US bull?
Iran, Iraq to build oil pipeline.
09.08.07 presstv.

Oil and occupation.
9-15,07, G. Nassar, ahram.org. The occupation of Iraq would give the US control over the Caspian Sea, the site of much of Iran's oil. It would enable the US to extend its influence from Darfur to West Africa and from East Timor to the Gulf, and perhaps even control China's oil needs. The US has a grand plan, and central to that plan is the protection of Israel's security. The latter has been one of Washington's top priorities for 60 years.

What Unites Iraqis: Blocking Western Petroleum Companies From Seizing Control of Their Oil.
09.08.07. J. Holland, Alternet. Despite ethnic bloodshed in Iraq majorities of Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds are united in their disapproval of the oil laws that Washington and Big Oil are pushing.

Hundreds of experts discount Iraq Oil law.
09.08.07. UPI.

9[US-]IRAQ hopes to call open race for its oil in September.
09.08.07,. Reuters. ... Some analysts have said [Condi's]oil major ConocoPhillips, which holds 20% in Lucoil could help the Russian company receive the contract."

US and French Oil Conglomerates Share the Spoils of War.
10.08.07. David R. Baker, San Francisco Chronicle, with an introduction by Michel Chossudovsky, Global Research

Iraq experts: referendum on oil law.
10.08.07. UPI.

Howard warns Maliki: act or face pullout.
11.08.07. Sign [Bremmer} oil contract ... or else ...

The Iraq Oil Ministry: In the Service of the Oil Companies?.
11.08.07. R. Jacobs, Znet.

will UK troops leave when this is finished?
Al Basrah Oil Terminal Renovation Project Nears Completion
11.08.07. Grant Sattler, Gulf Region Division, blackanthem. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers invested $67.5 million to rehabilitate the export facility 50 km offshore in the Arabian Gulf. Currently, one and a half million barrels of crude oil a day leave Iraq via tankers on-loading at ABOT. That volume is roughly half of the terminal loading capacity of 3 million barrels per day achieved with the upgrade./ Iraq’s economy is dominated by crude oil export accounting for 97 percent of the government’s revenue. The GRD has been working to improve the country’s ability to get its crude oil to world markets through renovation of key components of the oil infrastructure. The $1.7 billion effort has been funded by the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund, but is only a fraction of the $8 billion needed, according to a Coalition Provisional Authority estimate./ Prior to renovation ABOT illustrated the condition of the entire Iraqi oil infrastructure. Designed and commissioned by Brown and Root in 1974, the 30-year-old technology was in serious disrepair from decades of under funding, lack of preventive maintenance, and war damage from the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War. ... Anderson said, “The Corps came out with [construction contractor] AFI and [Parsons Iraq Joint Venture] on Phase 1 to do a refurbishment of the loading arms and the rigging. The functional part of the arms weren’t in real good shape.” In fact, an April 2003 assessment found the loading arms to be operating at only a quarter of their design rate and leaking excessively.

Cheney, Putin, and the Battle for Iraqi Oil
13.08.07. Jonathan Cutler, uruknet. ---If the US invasion of Iraq was motivated, in part, by the desire to prevent Russia from winning access to Iraqi oil after the collapse of UN sanctions, then Cheney is being well served by his Shiite friends in Iraq. I first made that argument in an April 2007 post entitled, "The US-Russian War in Iraq" in which I suggested that the details of the draft hydrocarbons law tended to leave Russian-backed companies–especially Lukoil–out in the cold. Last we! ek, Sistani-backed oil minister Hussain al-Shahristani confirmed Russian fears. In meetings with Shahristani, Russia sought to use the promise of debt relief to win better terms for Lukoil. According to Kommersant, that plan to make debt relief conditional appears to have crumbled...

The Bipartisan Guarantee of More War in Iraq
15.08.07. Chris Floyd, ICH. 'We invaded your country. We occupied your country. We wrote your constitution, in which the arbitrary decrees of our colonial viceroy were imposed as fundamental law. We looted your money. We armed your sectarians. And we are going to keep a large number of troops in your country, come what may. But we aren't going to baby-sit you anymore. No, if you don't get your act together -- and sign the goddamned Oil Law already -- we are just going to withdraw to our permanent bases and watch you kill each other. -- That is the sum total of the leading Democratic candidate's position on Iraq.'

Prominent Iraqis criticise oil law
15.08.07. Ahmed Janabi, aljazeera. A statement, signed by 419 Iraqi oil experts, economists and intellectuals, expresses grave concern that the newly proposed law would deprive Iraq from its most vital resource, oil and give foreign companies domination over Iraq's wealth.

Iraq oil law up in Sept., official says
16.08.07. eathtimes. WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 A top official in the Iraqi Embassy in Washington expects the oil law to top Parliament's agenda when lawmakers return to session at the start of next month.

Tomgram: Michael Klare, Tough Oil on Tap
16.08.07. Tomgram / Michael Klare. The New Energy Pessimism; On Tap: The Tough-Oil Era ; A Demanding World ; The Missing Trillions.

Iraq gov't summit won't discuss oil law
17.08.07. eathtimes. "The summit will not discuss the oil and gas draft laws and the deBaathification law," he said.
Both laws are prickly in Iraq's fragile and terse political climate. Various factions can't agree on how much access foreign and private companies should have to Iraq's reserves, as well as how strong the central, regional and local governments should be in deciding how the reserves are explored, developed and produced.

Iraq delegation to Syria to talk about oil
17.08.07. earthtimes. "Talks with the Syrian side will concentrate on discussing the security and oil fields and activating former agreements in the security and economic fields, as well as the Syrian desire to import crude oil from Iraq," Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani told the Voices of Iraq news agency. "The talks will also address fixing the oil pipeline between Iraq and Syria, which needs maintenance and protection."

Sesktak Warns Iraqi Oil Law Contains ‘Undue Ability Of U.S. Oil Companies To Control Iraqi Profits’
18.08.07. thinkprogress.org. with video & transcript

Why Iraqis oppose U.S.-backed oil law
19.08.07. David Bacon, sfgate. Workers think foreign firms will take over ’ Across the political spectrum in Washington, members of Congress are now demanding that the Iraqi government meet certain benchmarks, which presumably would show that it's really in charge. But there's a big problem with the most important benchmark: the oil law. It is extremely unpopular in Iraq.

Oil giants rush to lay claim to Iraq
20.08.07. hindu.com. The world’s oil majors will descend on two key conferences about Iraqi oil next month, seizing their last chance to jockey for position before the expected passing of the country’s hydrocarbon law sets off a scramble for its vast energy resources. .. All the big players will be there, including BP, Shell, Exxon and Chevron, as well as minnows such as Addax Petroleum, some of which have operations in Iraq. David Horgan, Managing Director of Petrel Resources, an Irish explorer with a presence in Iraq since 1999, said: “All the oil companies have been salivating at the prospect of Iraq for years.

Western oil group eyes assets in Iraq
23.08.07. NBC/legitgov.org. A large western oil company has offered $700m for oil assets in Iraqi Kurdistan owned by DNO, the small Norwegian oil company. The offer signals that international oil companies are willing to put significant amounts of money into Iraq in spite of the security problems and lack of a legal framework. DNO refused to name the company, but industry executives speculated that Royal Dutch Shell was a possible bidder.

The Problem Isn't Mr. Maliki
24.08.07. The New York Times | Editorial. "His government's deep sectarian urges have also been evident in the continuing failure to enact legislation to fairly share (sic) oil revenues." NB: In spite of all the available information above, the NY Times still appear to remain ignorant of the oil problem in Iraq.

THE ALLAWI SAGA Iraqi interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi discussed his country's counter-terrorism plan. Sept. 23, 2004.White House photo by Eric Draper Former PM Allawi's front pulls out of Iraq government 24.08.07. DPA-uruknet. Former Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's Iraqi National List (INL) has withdrawn "finally" from Nuri al-Maliki's government, a leading INL member told independent Voices of Iraq (VOI) Friday. The Iraqi National List is a coalition of Iraqi political parties who ran in the December 2005 Iraqi elections and got eight percent of the vote and 25 out of 275 seats. ( not enough for US? . So what do the US and Allawi do now? Allawi Pays $300k for Anti-Maliki US Campaign Documents obtained by IraqSlogger show Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki's chief Iraqi opponent, Ayad Allawi, is paying Washington lobbyists with close ties to the White House $300,000 to help with Allawi's efforts in the U.S. to promote himself and undermine Maliki. this was the plan all along. With Allawi in, the oil law can be passed and everyone but the Iraqi people are happy . A further story on Allawi, Allawi's Muscle: The CIA-Controlled Iraqi National Intelligence Service (25.08.07, Spencer Ackerman) can be read here . "We are still in the early stages of our new operations.." Bush (25.08.07, AFP) Is the U.S. government going to do a "Pinochet Purge" in Iraq?

Allawi's Muscle: The CIA-Controlled Iraqi National Intelligence Service
24.08.07. tpmmuchraker.com. Alleged billion dollar thief Hazem Shaalan isn't Ayad Allawi's only infamous friend. Allawi is also a close ally of the head of Iraq's largest intelligence service -- a man who takes his billions from Washington, not Baghdad.

Allawi Lobby Contract Just One Among Many
25.08.07. Spencer Ackerman - TPM Muckraker / uruknet. "It's not just Barbour Griffith & Rogers, and it's not just Ayad Allawi. Ten different U.S. firms are registered through the Department of Justice's Foreign Agents Registration Act database as having active contracts with various Iraqi factions." The 10 firms are listed.

Bush, al-Maliki and the Press
27.08.07. A. DiMaggio, Counterpunch – ICH. Chronicle of a Coup Foretold? Consider the most recent example of disdain for Iraqi national sovereignty: the U.S. attempt to overthrow of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The attempted coup has been received rather well in slavish, sycophantic coverage throughout the American press. The axiom presented amongst U.S. political and media elites is lucid enough: the United States retains the "right" to impose any "necessary" changes in other countries' political and economic structures, all in the name of promoting the greater good. The greater good in this case? ˇ preventing civil war and societal meltdown.

Iraq Has No New Oil Law, and No Gas
27.08.07. aliveinbagdad.org. While US officials on all sides criticize the Iraqi Parliament’s failure to pass an oil law, no one is asking a more critical question to the government’s local credibility and functionality, where is all the gas?

Is Allawi's Bloc Back in the Government?
28.08.07. Iraqslogger.com. After "Resignations," Three of Ex-PM's Five Ministers Attend Cabinet Meeting.

Analysts: Lobbyists Must Name Allawi's Backer
29.08.07. C. Davidson, iraqslogger.com. DC Lobbying Firm's Initial Statements to Justice Dept. Inaccurate, Incomplete

Maliki: I won't resign, can't be forced out
29.08.07. McClatchy.

Shell And Dow Prepare $2.1 Billion Iraqi Petro
29.08.07. forbes. Anglo-Dutch oil company Royal Dutch Shell is reportedly in talks with Dow Chemical to develop an Iraqi petrochemical plant for $2.1 billion, in a likely attempt to gain a strong foothold prior to the hoped-for opening up of the country's broken oil industry. But analysts believe the project itself has little hope of being profitable.

Iraq's resources
29.08.07. IHT. Over the years the media (not the bloggers!) has been strangely silent concerning the commercial oil deals made in Iraq during the occupation. . Now the truth is evident as the United States pulls out all the stops to manipulate the Iraqi Parliament to pass an oil law in September that would give control of Iraqi oil to foreign interests, in particular, U.S. oil companies. . While the vast majority of those who opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq speculated that the real reason to invade had to do with control of Iraqi oil, they had no proof. . Over the years the media has been strangely silent concerning the commercial oil deals made in Iraq during the occupation. . Now the truth is evident as the United States pulls out all the stops to manipulate the Iraqi Parliament to pass an oil law in September that would give control of Iraqi oil to foreign interests, in particular, U.S. oil companies. . For decades, Iraqi oil was nationalized and the extraction/production was run by Iraqis. This new legislation gives much control of Iraq's vital natural resource to foreign oil companies, notably American ones closely associated with the Bush/Cheney administration. Wake up, Americans. Understand the real reasons behind this war. Stand up, Iraqis. Do not allow your government to give away your natural resources under foreign pressure.

Approval of Iraq's oil law in sight
29.08.07. reuters - presstv.ir.

Why did Wikpedia vanish the al-Maliki's exile?
29.08.07. Mike McKinnon, uruk.net. The question for tonight is who edited Nouri al-Maliki's entry at Wikipedia? Recently, we learned that the CIA and Fox "News" were among those editing entries at Wikipedia. If you go to the Wikipedia entry for Nouri al-Maliki, you find something very interesting (...) Wikipedia offers a history archive of each page. I went back to 2006 when he was becoming prime minister and this was the topic listing then: 1 Early life 2 Exile 3 Return to Iraq 4 Pri! me Minister nomination 5 References 6 External links Do you see the second item? "2. Exile." It's followed by "3. Return to Iraq." What happened to those? They've been "disappeared."...

Behind Allawi's Bid for Power
29.08.07. NBC-newsweek. The former Iraqi prime minister speaks out on how he hired a well-connected Washington lobbying firm to help pave his attempt to oust the current government. Who’s footing the bill?

US-Allawi Coup May Be On Its Way
30.08.07. Arianna Huffington, HP – ICH.
As we all await the Petraeus Report on the state of the surge, we may also need to be anticipating the Allawi Coup.

Iraq leftists protest key oil bill
31.08.07. AFP. Dozens of Iraqis protested in central Baghdad on Saturday against the expected debate in parliament later this month of a draft oil law Washington deems a cornerstone of reconciliation efforts. The demonstration was called by left-wing groups opposed to moves to open up Iraq's oil and gas sector to Western firms in the same bill that aims to reassure Sunnis that earnings will be fairly shared among the country's divided communities.

VIDEO
Hassan Jumaa, President of Iraqi Federation of Oil Union. Hassan describes the Union's campaign against the proposed Hydrocarbon Law, which will see much of Iraq's oil wealth fall into the hands of foreign oil companies.


SEPTEMBER 2007

Some see 'coup' as Iraq's best hope
01.09.08. Chicago Tribune. Ex-premier Allawi building political bloc to challenge al-Maliki. In the lobbies of luxury hotels and the apartments of exiles, an assortment of Iraqi politicians has been spending the summer vacation plotting a new Iraqi coup - a non-violent, parliamentary coup to be sure, but a coup nonetheless, that would oust (US Puppet )Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, declare a state of emergency and install a new (”democratic?” ) government.

Oil firms to submit $1bn Iraq development plan
02.09.07. Reuters – uruk.net. Addax Petroleum and Genel Enerji expect to submit a $1 billion development plan within weeks to Iraq's Kurdish region for their joint venture TTopco's Taq Taq oilfield, a TTopco executive said Sunday. … The region had put new deals on hold while it waited for Baghdad to pass a controversial new federal oil law which stipulates who controls the world's third largest oil reserves and how revenue is distributed.


Iraq parliament faces storms over Baathists, oil law
02.09.07. AFP - uruk.net. Iraq's parliament reconvenes on Tuesday for what is expected to be a stormy session over allowing members of Saddam Hussein's Baath party back into positions of power and to tackle a key oil law. Bitterly-divided lawmakers return to the national assembly after a month-long holiday Washington had urged them not to take, just days ahead of a crucial progress report on Iraq to the US Congress. Washington sees resolution of the Baath party issue and the passage of the oil law as benchmarks to measure Iraq's progress towards political reconciliation that will eventually allow a withdrawal of US forces from the war-ravaged country...

VULTURES WAITING … Oil majors to meet with the Iraq government at leading summit in Dubai 15.08.07. The world's pre-eminent operators within the global oil, petrochemical, electricity and security sectors will descend on Dubai early next month for the forthcoming Iraq Oil, Gas, Petrochemical & Electricity Summit, the worlds first event organised to consider the future of Iraq’s abundant energy resources through direct consultation with the international private sector. The summit, which will take place in Dubai on 2-4 September ,The official Iraqi delegation will include some of the most important figures from Iraq’s energy sector, including Minister of Industry & Minerals HE Fawzi Al-Hariri, Minister of Electricity HE Kareem Wahid and KRG Minister of Oil HE Ashti Hawrami. It will also include Thamer Ghadbhan, a former oil minister and Chairman of the Iraq Oil Commission, Bahr Alolom, former oil minister and Chairman of the Official Summit Steering Committee, Mohamed Al-Waili, Governor of Basra and Abdulrahman Mustafa, Governor of Kirkuk, who will be headlining a special session on Iraq’s oil strategy and the key requirements for the sector. .. These best-in-breed operators and companies will be represented at board level in order to build the relationships that will be crucial to the future of the Iraqi energy sector and include the likes of BP, Exxon, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Lukoil, Statoil, Marathon Oil, Total, Shell, Kuwait National Petroleum, Annadarko, Schlumberger, ABB, ONGC, General Electric, Cummins Power, Mitsui, Aegis, ArmorGroup, Janussian, Control Risks Group, Unity, Hart, Olive Security, GardaWorld and Triple Canopy. Lack of legal framework keeps oil investors out of Iraq 02.09.07. AP-IHT. Iraqi government officials and energy experts presented detailed plans for exploiting the wartorn country's vast petroleum wealth but admitted that the absence of a law regulating the industry is a bigger obstacle than security to attracting foreign investment. Government officials at the three-day "Iraq Oil, Gas, Petrochemicals and Electricity Summit" held in Dubai tempered their grandiose projects for exploiting the country's massive oil reserves by admitting that the vital, but contentious, law still needed to be passed. … "The majority of politicians are aware that we cannot go on without it," he said. "The oil law is the future [ruin] of Iraq." Despite being some of the largest in the world, Iraq's oil reserves are also some of the least exploited with the worst infrastructure — something Iraq [ ie US government is hoping foreign investors can change. Talks have been held with Shell , Texaco and Dow Chemicalcompanies on possible investments in various proposed projects, said Fawzi al-Hariri, Iraq's Minister of Industry and Minerals. He said the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation has also expressed interest. ( Quite a few important oil firms omitted from this list? Iraq considering $2billion petrochemical plant 02.09.07. Reuters – Scotsman. Iraq is considering building a $2 billion (992 million pound) petrochemical plant and could begin talks with potential international investors in the project this year, the country's industry minister said on Sunday.

Bush in Iraq! (03.09.07)

Brits leave Basra Palace - but they will still be at Basra airport, so many press reports are misleading. (03.09.07)



Other Index Research articles on Iraq:

US Bases in Iraq: Part I: Baghdad (updated 13/08/07)

US/UK Bases in Iraq, Part II. The South (updated 03/09/07)

Basra Shadowlands

The Haditha Doctor and The Media Dissemblers(updated 03/09/07)

Haditha: The Mai Lai of Iraq

Iraq: The Assassination of Academics : The Jalili Report

Prisons and Torture in Iraq (Updated to 12/12/06)

Iraq: Security Companies and Training Camps (Updated to 02.09.07)

Iraq: Victims of Violence (Updated to 03/03/07)

Index on Iraq: a journey in hell

The Iraq Oil Crunch: Index Timeline

IRAQ: Green Zone Blowback: Index Timeline(updated 03.09.07)

PNAC: Part I - Blueprint for Imperialism

PNAC: Part II - "Special Interests" - The Persian Gulf (Updated to 17/08/07)

Haditha: The Mai Lai of Iraq

Index on Iraq: a journey in hell

Index on US Troops (updated to 29.08.07)

UK Troops in Iraq: TimeLine (Updated 28.02.07, continued on UK Bases in Iraq)

Iraq: The "Grateful" Dead

Camp Falcon : What Really happened?

Not the Hay Festival: Juhasz, Muttitt, Christodoulou

Iraq: The Occupation is the disease

Iraq's US/UK Permanent Bases : Intentional Obfuscation




Come to Washington this September for the historic union of the 9/11Truth, Peace and Impeachment movements. March with us as we honor the victims of 9/11 and the thousands of casualties of the illegal wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Call for the end of the bogus war on terror, impeachment of the criminals in the White House and restoration of our civil liberties.


Sarah Meyer is a researcher living in the UK. She is on the BRussels Tribunal advisory committee.




The url for Iraq Oil: The Vultures are waiting is: http://indexresearch.blogspot.com/2007/09/iraq-oil-vultures-are-waiting.html
shorter url is:http://tinyurl.com/32wlqq

The article can be seen on the BRussels Tribunal site here .