Maliki and Ahmadinejad Working Together

[Conley]

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2010/10/18/1287415221547/Nouri-al-Maliki-and-Mahmo-006.jpg

Iran has for the first time publicly backed Nouri al-Maliki to lead Iraq for a second term, hours after Maliki arrived in Tehran today for a rare meeting with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.


Maliki is due to travel to Qom later to meet his former foe turned ally Moqtada al-Sadr, who has aligned his powerful political bloc with Maliki's coalition.


The Guardian revealed yesterday that Iran had brokered a deal between Sadr and Maliki and had recently used its sway with Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon in an attempt to shut out US input into a new government.


The revelations of increased Iranian involvement in Iraq at a time when the departing US military is scaling back its influence have caused ripples inside Iraq, where Maliki's visit is being cast by the Iraqi media as a job application.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/18/iran-iraq-maliki-ahmadinejad-sadr

It's an older article but concerning nonetheless. I am not at all confident in post-US Iraq as an ally in the region.

[hellraiser]

this is sad :(

confused iran and iraq never friends before

maybe like before just both against u.s.

[MMC]

Now we will see what happens with all those civillian contactors that will still be there. Plus our Embassy.Think Iraq will abide by those sanctions againt Iran?

[Conley]

Absolutely not.

[Peter1469]

This is not a friendship. Iran is the regional hegemon and Iraq is just kissing butt.

[Mister D]

That sort of anthropomorphism is common. Nations don't have friendships.

[MMC]

Also Maliki is trying to get more money out of us. Which we said no. As soon as we did then it's about brown-nosing with Iran.

[Mister D]

What's he going to get from Iran in terms of cash?

[MMC]

I don't know.....but I heard then they said that they were looking for more production on the oil. But that whatever they were predicting that all said they couldn't boost it by that much. That would be Iraq. For all I know they are willing to refine it and or get them gas. I am sure Iran would pay cash for it.

[Mister D]

Does any state in the Mid East have much in the way of refining capacity?

[hellraiser]

you no tell me! i know more iraqi you not so much

[MMC]

Does any state in the Mid East have much in the way of refining capacity?


:dontknow: all about who has the most or the best.....here is some stats on Iraq and what they are refining.

http://www.oilgasarticles.com/articles/75/1/Oil-Refining-in-Iraq/Page1.html

Plus I do know that the Iraqis stated they were going to build a refinery up around the Kurdish North near the borders of Syria and Turkey. Oh.....and guess who is on that other border side in the North. :wink:

[BOOMSTICK]

Makes sense they would try to refine it too.

[Mister D]

It would make sense but it's not easy to build that infrastructure. That's why few Mid East states refine their own oil or much of it at any rate.

[MMC]

In 1961 (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/1961) Iraq passed Public Law 80 whereby Iraq expropriated 95% of the Iraq Petroleum Company (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Iraq_Petroleum_Company)'s concessions (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Concession_(contract)), and went on to announce the intent to form the INOC in 1964 (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/1964).[2] (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#cite_note-Falola-1) In 1967 (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/1967) Iraq and the Soviet Union (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Soviet_Union) signed the Iraq-Soviet Protocol which committed the Soviet Union to give technical and financial aid (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#) to the company.[2] (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#cite_note-Falola-1) In 1967 and 1968 the company's purview was expanded to include areas expropriated from the Iraq Petroleum Company.[1] (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#cite_note-Shwadran-0)
Unlike the National Iranian Oil Company (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/National_Iranian_Oil_Company), the INOC was forbidden from entering into partnerships or granting concessions to foreign oil companies (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Oil_companies).[1] (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#cite_note-Shwadran-0) Though there was discussion of allowing the French Compagnie Française de Pétroles (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Compagnie_Fran%C3%A7aise_de_P%C3%A9troles), from whom the North Rumaila Field (http://thepoliticalforums.com/wiki/Rumaila_Field) had been appropriated, to enter (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#) into a contract to develop the field, ultimately, with the help of the Soviet Union, the INOC opened the field on 7 April 1972.[1] (http://thepoliticalforums.com/#cite_note-Shwadran-0)......snip~

Interesting little piece here about Northern oil out of Kirkuk.....huh?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_National_Oil_Company

[Mister D]

The Soviets were always sparring with us in the Mid East.

[MMC]

http://www.petroleum-economist.com/Article/2898066/Ambitious-Iraqi-refining-plan-needs-huge-investment.html


http://www.petroleum-economist.com/images/991/iraq-oil-refineries.jpg

[Mister D]

As per the article, they can't even meet domestic demand. They would need to double existing capacity. That's pitiful.

[MMC]

Yep.....thats what I was saying. About them doubling their capacity. Which most doubt it could be done. Still Iran is expected to be supplying about 75% of Iraq's Energy.

[Conley]

Seems like with all that money they could build a few refineries. I guess security is a major issue as well.

[Mister D]

Yeah, that and cronyism.

[Mister D]

Yep.....thats what I was saying. About them doubling their capacity. Which most doubt it could be done. Still Iran is expected to be supplying about 75% of Iraq's Energy.

I think Iran has to rely on imported petroleum products as well.

[Mister D]

It's amazing how much the Mid Eastern oil reserves have retarded economic growth.

[Peter1469]

I imagine they will enter round two of their civil war now that we are gone. Once they kiss and make up then they will start making refineries.

[MMC]

Doubt there will be any kissing and making up. Today the Sunni accused Al Maliki of turning into Saddam, and that he his creating a dictatorshiip. The Suuni accused the US of leaving and not finishing the job. So today the Sunni called on the International Community to do something about Al-Maliki.

[Peter1469]

As I said, they have some issues to work out between themselves. It really isn't our concern. Nation building where there is not internal desire to build a nation is folly.

[Mister D]

As I said, they have some issues to work out between themselves. It really isn't our concern. Nation building where there is not internal desire to build a nation is folly.

That it is. We discussed the hypothetical partitioning of Iraq before but I forget where. I still think that would have been a much better idea.