Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid received the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Interior, Rebar Ahmed, and a top delegation, in Baghdad on Sunday 12 February.
Kurdistan 24 reported that the two sides discussed developments and issues regarding the economy, security, Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), the unification of all Iraqi armed forces, and the payment of the KRG’s share of the federal budget for November and December of last year.
The Iraqi President stressed the importance of cooperation between the Iraqi federal government and the KRG to resolve outstanding issues involving the Iraqi constitution, most notably surrounding the oil and gas law draft.
Al-Monitor reported that tensions increased between the two parties after Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court ruled in February 2022 that the KRG’s 2007 oil and gas law is unconstitutional. The KRG concludes contracts with foreign energy firms and exports oil to Turkiye independent of Baghdad, per the law. The KRG has repeatedly rejected the court’s decision.
Several international oil services firms, including Halliburton, Baker Hughes, and Schlumberger, committed to stopping work in Iraqi Kurdistan in response to the court ruling.
The KRG began exporting oil via pipeline in June 2014. When ISIS militants invaded Mosul that month, KRG Peshmerga forces took advantage of the ensuing collapse of the Iraqi army and quickly moved to take control of oil-rich Kirkuk.
This gave KRG leaders control of the infrastructure to export oil to Turkiye via pipeline, independent of Iraq’s central government, boosting future Kurdish aspirations for independence.
Exporting Kurdish oil from Kirkuk proved controversial, as much of this oil was, in turn, immediately sold by Turkish traders to Israeli firms.
Forbes reported on 23 June 2014 that the sale of KRG oil to Israel had been confirmed, citing reports from Reuters, Bloomberg, and the Wall Street Journal showing that a tanker carrying oil from the Ceyhan port had docked in the Israeli city of Ashkelon.
The Financial Times reported that by August 2015, roughly 77 percent of Israel’s oil supply was being imported from Iraqi Kurdistan via the Ceyhan port.
According to the Kurdish Draw Media, the KRG sold 38 percent of its oil to Israel in January 2023, with the remaining amounts being exported to Italy, China, Croatia, Taiwan, and Romania.
The KRG has repeatedly denied that it deals directly or indirectly with Israel, stating that oil cargoes often change hands several times before reaching their final destination.