US welcomes Baghdad-Erbil oil deal

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The U.S. welcomed an agreement Tuesday between Iraq’s government the Kurdish authorities over oil revenues and budget.

The Iraqi council of ministers approved the deal between the government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, according to a official statement on the Iraqi prime minister’s website.

“This resolution, in line with its constitution, allows all Iraqis to benefit equitably from Iraq’s hydrocarbon sector,” said Marie Harf, U.S. State Department Deputy spokeswoman.

The deal was decided at a session in the presence of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi and Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani.

The Kurdish government will provide at least 250,000 barrels of crude oil per day to the federal government for export purposes, according to the agreement that also said Iraqi oil belongs to all Iraqis.

The terms also allows for the export of 300,000 barrels per day by the federal government from the Kirkuk oil fields through the oil pipeline in the Kurdish region.

“This agreement will further strengthen both Iraq’s federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government as they work together to defeat ISIL,” Harf said while congratulating the sides on the agreement.

“It was also agreed that the central government will also allocate a portion of the federal land forces’ budget to the peshmerga forces in proportion to the population ratio of the region,” she added, “for the sake of Iraq’s security.” /End/