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Mix-Ansicht- IRAQ - Washington Envisages US Controlling Iraq’s Oil Revenue - Cosa, 12.05.2003, 10:28
IRAQ - Washington Envisages US Controlling Iraq’s Oil Revenue
-->eine Zusammenstellung von MEES was die USA mit den irakischen Erdölerlösen vorhaben und was momentan im Sicherheitsrat gespielt wird.....
12-May-2003
IRAQ
Washington Envisages US Controlling Iraq’s Oil Revenue
The US has circulated a draft UN Security Council resolution aimed at lifting sanctions on Iraq. While the indications are that the atmosphere in the council will be less frosty than it was before the war, Washington’s proposal that the US should control Iraq’s oil revenue received an immediate and angry response from Iraqis. Intensive discussions are under way in Baghdad aimed at forming an interim Iraqi authority/provisional government that will fill the power vacuum in the country. The big question is whether political moves in New York and Baghdad will produce results in time to stop the state of lawlessness in Iraq becoming even more serious than it is today.
At MEES press-time, the Security Council was beginning discussions of a US draft resolution (circulated on 8 May and co-sponsored by the UK and Spain) aimed at lifting sanctions on Iraq, and bringing the oil-for-food program to an end. The current phase ends on 3 June. The Bush administration envisages the occupying powers exercising the responsibilities allocated in the resolution - including the control of Iraqi oil revenue - for an initial period of 12 months, “to continue thereafter as necessary unless the Security Council decides otherwise.” Speaking on 7 May, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said he was hopeful that the disputes that split the Security Council ahead of the war in Iraq could be put to one side, adding that Washington was working to win the approval of France, Germany, Russia and China for the new resolution. He described the draft as “forward-looking” and said that “whatever happened in the past is in the past.”
The US draft envisages the following main points:
<ul> ~ Lifting of trade, economic and financial sanctions “with the exception of prohibitions related to the sale or supply to Iraq of arms and related material.”
~ Phasing out the oil-for-food program in four months.
~ Creation of an Iraqi Assistance Fund with an international advisory board, including representatives of the UN Secretary-General, the IMF and the World Bank to be held by the Central Bank of Iraq and to be audited by independent public accountants. “The funds in the Iraqi Assistance Fund shall be disbursed at the direction of the Authority [the Occupying Power] in consultation with the Iraqi Interim Authority… The Iraqi Assistance Fund should be used to meet the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people, for the economic reconstruction and repair of Iraq’s infrastructure, for the continued disarmament of Iraq, and for the cost of indigenous civilian administration, and for other purposes benefiting the people of Iraq… All export sales of petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas from Iraq following the date of the adoption of this resolution shall be made consistent with prevailing international market practices. All proceeds from such sales shall be deposited in the Iraqi Assistance Fund until such time as a new Iraqi government is properly constituted and capable of discharging its responsibilities.” Oil future sales should be immune from lawsuits.
~ All funds remaining in the escrow account should be transferred to the Iraqi Assistance Fund.
~ Requests the UN secretary-general to appoint a special coordinator for Iraq whose responsibilities will involve “coordinating the UN’s activities in post-conflict processes in Iraq, coordination among UN and international agencies engaged in humanitarian assistance and reconstruction activities in Iraq, coordinating with the Authority [the Occupying Power] and assisting the people of Iraq” - by, among other things, “working with the Authority and the people of Iraq with respect to the restoration and establishment of national and local institutions for representative governance.” </ul>
Russia’s view is that the Security Council should assign the oil-for-food program in all its aspects, including oil exports, to the Secretary-General - a proposal that is certain to be rejected by Washington. Russia’s Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said on 8 May that his government would support an easing of sanctions, but he stopped short of saying that it would support the US draft, adding: “The procedure of lifting the sanctions must be based on resolutions previously adopted by the UN Security Council.” Russia appears to be sticking to its insistence that sanctions should be lifted only when UN weapons inspectors have declared Iraq to be free of weapons of mass destruction. France has proposed the suspension of sanctions and the gradual phasing out of the oil-for-food program. But MEES soundings indicate that the French government is seeking to mend fences with Washington and will be adopting a stance of constructive engagement with the US draft resolution.
In Iraqi and other Arab political and oil circles, the publication of the US proposal met with an immediate and angry response, MEES soundings indicate. The consensus was that the idea of Washington controlling Iraq’s oil revenue under a scheme that could only be scrapped by a UN Security Council resolution (which the US has the power to veto) was unacceptable.
US Eases Iraq Restrictions
President Bush on 7 May suspended the Iraq Sanctions Act which barred the export of high-technology and other specified products to the country. Firms are still required to obtain government licenses to export these products, but the Treasury has said it will expedite the requests.
The US has also eased.rules that will allow: thousands of Iraqis resident in the US to send up to $500 a month to family and friends in Iraq; humanitarian aid supplies to be sent to Iraq; any activity paid for by the US government, including reconstruction moves by contractors; privately-funded humanitarian activities by US-based organizations. However, restrictions on the export of goods which are controlled for national security purposes will remain, with a special government license being required for such trade.
Government Needed Without Delay To Avert Worsening Lawlessness
MEES learns from well-connected sources in Baghdad that if an interim authority/provisional government is not formed soon, Iraq could face worsening lawlessness. Aside from the suffering caused by the absence of basic services and the disruption to commerce, the vast majority of Iraqis are living without any means of preserving personal security.
While intensive discussions are being held in Baghdad with the aim of forming an interim authority, there is no sign of progress. Various political factions - from inside the country and from exile groups - are jostling for position, seeking to further their own interests. Any delay in forming an administration, resulting from political differences among Iraqis or US intervention, is likely to make a bad situation worse. Until a new and effective police force is
established, the fear is that with the US forces unwilling or unable to re-establish law and order, militias representing various power groups within the country (including remanants of Saddam Husain’s supporters) will seek to establish their authority. “People are getting fed up,” one prominent Iraqi in Baghdad told MEES, “and we can’t wait until the end of May or June for a government. We have to have one now.”
On the positive side, some progress is being made in restoring authority outside the capital. Of particular significance was the successful election (under US supervision) on 5 May of a mayor (Ghanim al-Basso) and council for the northern city of Mosul. On 7 May the US appointed Husain al-Juburi as governor of Salah al-Din province. Furthermore, Iraqis are gradually being named to run ministries, under US supervision, with senior civil servants being promoted to top jobs. Ahmad al-Gaillini, a former deputy minister, takes over the industry ministry, while?Ali al-Janabi will run the health ministry.
Basic Structure Of Oil Administration Emerges
Against the background of discussions to form an interim authority, the structure of the post-war Iraqi oil administration is being put in place, bit by bit, by the Coalition Provisional Authority (the US-led administration in Iraq). In the short term, at least, the policy-making arm of the oil sector will be an advisory board, with former Shell Oil executive Philip Carroll CEO and former SOMO chief Fadhil Othman deputy CEO. The board is still in the process of being set up, and while members have not been named yet, MEES learns that some personnel from the Iraqi oil ministry, along with Iraqi-American oil experts and some international figures will be on it. Muhammad Ali Zaini, an exile who returned to Iraq with Pentagon officials, is affiliated with the US’s Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs (ORHA) in Baghdad. Gary Vogler is oil advisor to the US administration in Iraq.
Until the formation of an interim authority and the appointment of a minister, the oil ministry will be run by an interim authority management committee, with Thamir Ghadhban (formerly director of planning at the ministry) as CEO. The following are the key oil ministry appointments thus far:
CEO: Thamir Ghadhban
SOMO: Ali Rajab (having held the post, de facto, for some years)
Exploration:?Abd al-Karim Rashid (former head of drilling)
Northern Oil Company:?Adil Qazzaz (former senior executive in the company)
Southern Oil Company: Jabbar Laibi (former senior executive in the company)
Gas Filling Establishment: Husain al-Hadithi (a former undersecretary)
Economics and Finance: Radhwan al-Sa?di (retains his post)
Technical Department: Falih al-Khayyat (retains his post)
Iraq Oil Office Outside The Country Planned
MEES learns that the Iraqi oil ministry and SOMO are planning to open an office outside the country - possibly in Europe - on a short-term basis. The step is being taken to facilitate the operations of the two institutions at a time when communications and basic services in Iraq are still affected by the aftermath of the war.
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