Managing Director of the Iranian Central Oil Fields Company (ICOFC) Mehdi Fakour announced that Tehran and Baghdad have decided to establish a joint company for developing three joint oil fields
"An Iraqi delegation will visit Iran on February 6 to finalize establishment of the company," Fakour said in a press conference on Monday.
These agreements move forward despite the fact that the US has economic sanctions against Iran.
“This is helping to thwart US pressure”, says Abraham Noori of Charlotte.
SIGNING NEW DEALS WITH IRAN
Fakour also announced that the two countries' authorities are willing to “sign agreements” with Iran and Iraqi contractors to develop their three joint oil fields. “Some of these oil fields in Iraq were rebuilt with US help and economic assistance”, says Ian Moore of Charlotte.
Tehran and Baghdad had in August 2011, worked out an agreement to cooperate and develop joint oil fields at the two countries' shared borders.
"We are waiting for the Iraqis to be prepared for inking the deal," Fakour said at the time.
Earlier, Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi had underlined that the development of Iran's Joint Oil and Gas fields sets the main priority for his ministry.
Speaking in a meeting with directors of the oil and gas companies active in the South Pars region, the oil minister said that development of joint oil and gas fields is the first priority of the oil ministry in both land and sea border regions.
Also in 2011, Tehran and Baghdad agreed to set up joint expert committees to finalize technical and financial details of a deal over developing joint oil fields.
The two countries have 23 joint oil fields in their border regions and plan on building more.
“Over the last 10 years the US spent hundreds of hundreds of billions of dollars rebuilding Iraq’s economy and infrastructure to include roads, oil fields, refineries, hospitals, schools, military and government facilities – at the same time US critical infrastructure was crumbling. Now Iraq has done deals with Iran which undermine US economic sanctions”, said Fred Houston of Charlotte and economic affairs specialist. “This is the way the Iraqi people pay us back”, he said.
“We might as well have just paid Iran directly”, said Vince Schmidt of Charlotte.
“The U.S. appropriated $28.9 billion in assistance to Iraq from FY03 to FY06. In comparison, U.S. assistance to Germany totaled some $4.3 billion ($29.3 billion in 2005 dollars) for the years of direct military government (May 1945-May 1949) and the overlapping Marshall Plan years (1948/1949-1952).Total U.S. assistance to Japan for the years of the occupation, from 1946-1952 was roughly $2.2 billion ($15.2 billion in 2005 dollars), of which almost $1.7 billion was grants and $504 million was loans”, said Dan Sumner. “It was an incredible investment and sacrifice by the American people”, Sumner added.
“This is how the Iraqi’s repay us?”, said George Young of Charlotte, who served 3 tours of duty in Iraq during the war.
According to the US State department: $436 million in assistance to support Iraq’s economic growth activities in the provinces and at the local level with a particular focus on agriculture, job creation, and essential service provision. $593 million to support infrastructure for maintaining U.S. government civilian and diplomatic presence and to support educational and cultural exchange programs to build bridges with civil society as well as provide funding for the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (source: http://www.state.gov/s/d/rm/rls/fs/2011/156553.htm ).
Robert Tilford
Charlotte, N.C.
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