The
currently stateless Kurds sit astride the Iraq-Syria border on land
blessed/cursed with oil, other resources, and geopolitical
significance. Is it any wonder that mega-corporations and their
client states are looking to use the Kurds, stoke conflict, and
exploit the situation?
by
Whitney Webb
Part
4 - Corporate connection to Trump’s change of heart on Iraq
partition
Over
the years since these deals were struck, the Kurdish separatist
parties in Iraq have benefited immensely, though more recently they
have been hit hard by the global drop in oil prices. In 2014, they
were exporting 280,000 barrels of oil every day. And, despite
troubles with foreign companies brought on by falling oil prices and
the rise of Daesh (ISIS), the Kurds – as of the end of 2016 –
were exporting nearly 600,000 barrels a day.
Though
Daesh was painted by the media as a scourge to the Kurds, they have
in fact benefited from Daesh’s invasion of large swaths of Iraq.
Indeed, the Kurds – trained, armed and provided with airstrike
support by the U.S. and Israel – have taken control of many former
Daesh territories and have thereby expanded the size of their own
territory.
The
U.S. and its regional allies have said that the Kurds’ ability to
confront Daesh essentially entitles them to “have their way.” As
Sadad Ibrahim al-Husseini, former head of exploration and development
for the Saudi state oil company Aramco told The New York Times in
2014: “At the end of the day, the Kurds will have their way,
because they are the only credible Sunni group that can confront
ISIS.”
Not
surprisingly, the Kurd’s oil riches have brought them into direct
conflict with Iraq’s central government, which has since cut off
national funding for the Kurdish region and threatened any country or
company buying Kurdish oil with legal action for violating the
nation’s constitution by not sharing its oil sale revenue equally
among all Iraqis.
However,
countries like Turkey and Israel continue to buy significant amounts
of oil, as well as natural gas, from the Kurds. Turkey’s case is
particularly interesting given Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s
well-known hatred of the Kurds and opposition to Kurdish independence
in Syria. However, when it comes to Iraqi Kurdistan at least,
economic factors have won out, with Turkey’s ruling party having
stated that Kurds in Iraq have the right to self-determination.
Kurdish
control of Iraq’s oil-rich north is key to the partitioning plan.
As Michael Makovsky, a former Pentagon official, told The New York
Times: “I think Iraqi Kurdish independence is inevitable, at
least eventually. They have natural allies in the United States
because of the oil companies involved in drilling there. And the
Turks and Europeans need their gas.”
Though
candidate Trump had not voiced support for a partition of Iraq,
spurred by his administration’s strong ties to the oil industry,
Washington has become even more friendly to the Kurds – and to the
idea of Kurdish secession – since Trump took office.
However,
when the State Department was asked by journalist Nafeez Ahmed
whether it still stood by the traditional position of supporting a
unified Iraq, a department spokesperson answered: “With respect
to the unity of Iraq, you’re right; that is something we make a
point of saying. But ultimately, these are all internal political
discussions that Iraq needs to have with all ethnic groups resident
in the country.” As Ahmed notes, this is the first time that
the State Department has officially announced the U.S.’ willingness
to consider the partition of Iraq.
Source,
links:
http://www.mintpressnews.com/geopolitics-corporate-profits-push-iraq-syria-towards-partition/230830/
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