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Interview with Quabad Talabani,
representative of Kurdistan Govt to the U.S.
6.2.2007
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February 6, 2007
WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, -- An Iraqi oil and gas
council could mitigate the concerns of sparring
factions over legislation to develop the country's
energy reserves, the top Kurdish representative in
Washington says.
But Qubad Talabani, representative of the Kurdistan
Regional Government to the United States, warns that
the northern region has finished compromising on the
energy issue.
"We have made considerable concessions in this
process. ... What's got to come back now is a
guarantee that regions will receive their fair share
and regions will have the final say over management
and contracts of any future oil deals," Talabani,
son of Jalal Talabani, Iraq's president, told UPI
Friday in his Washington office.
Talabani also said the Kurdish north, largely
autonomous since 1991 and relatively free of
violence, has been deprived by the central
government in Baghdad of fuel and electricity it
deserves.
Negotiations over the hydrocarbons law have been
officially taking place since last year, but are
stuck on a few major points of disagreement between
the Kurds and the central government, rooted in
mistrust fomented by decades of violence. |
Qubad J. Talabani, representative of Kurdistan's
government to the U.S. |
Talabani said the council would be
"intergovernmental," made up of regional and central
government representatives and experts areas like
finance and banking.
"The council will make recommendations or comments
on decisions made by the regions," he said. "A
region should have final say over a region's
development. We can't have the central government
veto the decisions we make."
"The council will be not just advisory but also a
mechanism that distributes revenues. It won't have
the power to block regional decisions. I doubt it
will be a loophole-free system ... but they're
leaving it to common sense and, worryingly, to
goodwill."
Kurdish officials say their reserves near 50 billion
barrels -- about 43 percent of Iraq's total -- and
another 11 billion would be added if voters in
Kirkuk decide in a controversial referendum
scheduled by year's end to become part of the KRG.
Shiites control oil in the south, leaving Sunnis, a
minority group empowered during Saddam Hussein's
regime, with few resources. Oil sales fund 96
percent of the country's budget, so access to oil
revenue isn't a small concern.
The Kurds want 17 percent of revenue -- down from
the 20 percent they first wanted and more than the
13 percent the KRG was initially offered. No
agreement has been reached on the revenue-sharing
law. Talabani said when it is reached, the council
will ensure the measure is followed, not altered at
the whims of any Baghdad minister.
The hydrocarbons law is also stuck on who has
control over all new or future development. The KRG
argues the 2005 constitution puts all current oil
development under Baghdad's control and the rest to
the regions.
The KRG has signed development deals with private
companies, which Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani
has said won't be honored.
Talabani said the national hydrocarbons law should
set the parameters for such deals, but noted the
regions should be negotiating and signing them. And
any qualms about them would be brought before the
intergovernmental council.
"For too long the country has failed in its oil
policy," Talabani said of the history of central
control. "Gone are the days we'll be taken hostage
by anyone."
Talabani said the hydrocarbons law can be changed in
the future, after it is implemented and the
loopholes and errors are realized.
"We've got to start somewhere and kick start the
process," he said.
A deal on these issues, along with a much better
security situation, are seen as necessary for Iraq
to obtain the necessary investment in the
hydrocarbon sector.
The United States is leaning hard on Iraq to pass
the hydrocarbon law; it's a marker President Bush
has set to define success.
"It doesn't require American pressure," Talabani
said of the law. "It can't be said we're lagging."
"We won't bend on this issue. We value our
friendship with the Americans but any attempt to
force concessions will fail," Talabani said.
And for the success Kurdistan has seen, Talabani
says both Baghdad and Washington aren't doing their
part.
"Of the $21 billion spent on Iraq, 3 percent has
been given to KRG and has been spent mainly on civil
society not infrastructure programs. We get three
hours of electricity. Our people are bemused by
this. It's a cause of much frustration."
Talabani said the KRG's plans to increase its
electricity generating capacity have been stifled
and blames Baghdad for the current shortage of
transportation, cooking and heating fuels.
"It's huge. We're in winter. People need fuel for
heat. Vehicles are parked for hours, days sometimes,
to get gas. What people are saying is: 'Why didn't
we have this problem during Saddam's days?'"
Talabani said. "How can this government in Baghdad
be treating us worse?"
He accused Baghdad of creating the situation as
leverage over the Kurds during negotiations.
"We're afraid the instability of Iraq could
jeopardize the stability of the Kurdistan region. We
think the U.S. has neglected the region," Talabani
said.
"We won't break away from
Iraq, but we can't guarantee that Iraq won't break
away from us."
UPI
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