Ministry: Central government only negotiator for Kurdish-area oil deals with Turkey

BAGHDAD, Iraq: Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization is the only party allowed to grant and renew contracts with Turkish companies, the oil ministry said Wednesday, in a bid to ease Ankara's concerns about dealing with ethnic Kurds in the oil-rich north.

Turkey warned Iraq on Monday not to involve the Kurdish administration in oil business between the two countries after the organization — known as SOMO — asked Turkish companies, whose contracts were about to expire, to deal with local Iraqi Kurdish authorities to obtain new contracts earlier this month.

State Minister Kursad Tuzmen, who is in charge of foreign trade, said Turkey would only deal "with the central Iraqi government" and not with Iraqi Kurdish authorities, adding that he had sent Iraqi authorities a "strong letter," outlining Turkey's stance.

"There was a misunderstanding. The Kurdistan regional government asked the central government to let it be in charge of importing oil products from Turkey instead of SOMO, but this was not approved," ministry spokesman Assem Jihad told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Read the rest at the International Herald Tribune

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