Source: Resumption of Iraqi oil exports to Syria hinges on new agreement
Shafaq News/ Resuming Iraq's oilexports to Syria requires a "new agreement" between the twogovernments, a source from Iraq's Ministry of Oil said on Saturday.
The source told Shafaq News Agency,"The Ministry of Oil suspended crude oil exports to Syria after recentdevelopments and the fall of the Al-Assad regime,” adding, "Claims of anagreement between the Iraqi government and the new Syrian administration toresume oil exports are untrue."
Earlier reports, citing an Iraqipolitical source, suggested that Baghdad's government planned to resume crudeoil exports to Syria within days, utilizing a “more organized and precisemechanism” than previous arrangements. “Exporting oil between countriesrequires a formal, signed agreement between their governments,” he affirmed.
Notably, Iraq previously suppliedDamascus with 33,000 barrels of crude oil daily and 120,000 tons of fuel oilmonthly. Exports halted after Bashar al-Assad's ousting, driven by political andsecurity shifts in Syria and Baghdad's intent to reassess oil agreements.
The suspension of Iraqi oil exportsto Syria has exacerbated the fuel crisis within the country, amid theincreasing control of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and US forces over Syria'soil fields.
Currently, Syria imports around 5million barrels of oil monthly, equivalent to more than 160,000 barrels daily,compared to its pre-2011 production of 380,000 barrels, of which approximately150,000 were exported daily.
