Thread: Archive Latest News - Think Tank - 15/04/08 - 26/08/08

Parliament discusses 123 draft laws

Parliament's committees offered currently more than 123 draft laws to the council's presidency and these proposals would be voted and approved at near future legist advisor of Speaker, Sabah Alkerboli said.

Most important laws were media and communications commission, agreement between Iraq and UN, private colleges and universities, oil and gas, nclusion security companies of Iraqi law and other laws about state institutioins' work, Alkerboli said.

Other laws that passed readings stage are Arab agreement of counterterrorism, national and population's balance and Iraq's joining at agreement of anti torture, Alkerboli said

ÌÑíÏÉ ÇáÕÈÇÍ - Parliament discusses 123 draft laws

Damac plans $15bn Iraq project
UAE developer Damac Properties plans a $15 billion development in Iraq's Kurdistan province to start by the year-end, Damac said on Tuesday.

The project includes residential, commercial and hospitality buildings over 170 million square feet in Arbil, Damac said.

Damac Chairman Hussain Sajwani said the first phase of the project would cost $4.5 billion and the total cost of the project would be 55 billion dirhams ($14.98 billion).

"Tarin Hills development... will also create jobs and support growth in related sectors such as tourism and hospitality," the statement quoted Nerchivan Barzani, the prime minister of the region, as saying.

Damac, with projects in countries including Egypt, Qatar and Jordan, will eventually borrow funds from banks but will launch the project using Damac equity, Sajwani said.

Damac unit Damac Kuwaiti Holding, which listed in Kuwait in April, has said it would use listing proceeds to finance Iraq projects.

Damac plans $15bn Iraq project - Real Estate - ArabianBusiness.com

Iraq contracts

Major oil companies have all turned in their proposals to Iraq for oil service deals and some will be signed this month, Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani said on Sunday.

Shahristani had warned that Baghdad might drop the oil service contracts, worth about $500 million a piece, if the majors failed to sign deals by June. “If we are talking about the Technical Support Contracts, then all the major companies have submitted their proposals and we are studying these proposals and we expect to be able to sign some of them this month,” he told Reuters.

Iraq is negotiating six short-term service contracts with international oil companies, each aimed at boosting production by 100,000 barrels per day. Five of the deals under discussion are with oil majors Royal Dutch Shell, Shell in partnership with BHP Billiton , BP, Exxon Mobil and Chevron in partnership with Total. Iraq is also in talks with a consortium of Anadarko Vitol and Dome for a sixth contract on the Luhais field.

Arab Times :: Fears mount on ‘SOFA’

Update.......

Kurdistan PM Barzani says Iraq should triple crude oil export capacity, agree on oil law

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Kurdistan's Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said Tuesday that Iraq should boost crude oil export capacity to 6 million barrels a day, three times the amount the country is exporting now.

«We think Iraq needs to export more oil,» Barzani said to reporters after a press conference in Dubai. «Iraq has (the) capacity to export six million barrels a day, but they're happy with two million.
Barzani also said that talks about Iraq's long-awaited federal oil law will resume within two weeks in Baghdad, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

On Monday, Iraq's oil ministry said the country's oil production and exports have risen to their highest levels since the March 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Iraq's exports reached 2.11 million barrels a day in March while the total output stood at about 2.5 million barrels a day, spokesman Assem Jihad told The Associated Press.

The Energy Information Administration, part of the U.S. Energy Department, estimated Iraqi production at about 2.6 million barrels a day in early 2003. Production tapered off just before the U.S.-led invasion, then dropped to below 1.5 million barrels a day, according to the group.

Iraq sits on the world's third-largest proven petroleum reserves, totaling more than 115 billion barrels. But the industry is plagued by a lack of modern equipment and training after decades of U.N. sanctions, war and Saddam Hussein's ruinous rule.

The country plans to boost oil output to 3 million barrels a day by the end of 2008 and 4.5 million barrels a day by end of 2013.

Iraq hopes to earn about US$70 billion (¤45 billion) in oil revenues this year if crude oil prices remain high and the country maintains stability in major producing areas.

Iraqis also need to agree on a federal law governing its oil wealth in order to attract foreign investment, Barzani said. «It's important that we agree ... otherwise foreign companies won't come to invest.

Barzani said that Kurds were proposing a single package covering oil law, revenue sharing law, Iraqi oil ministry and an Iraqi national oil company that would be presented to parliament.

But «Baghdad has different views,» Barzani said, adding that the disagreement over oil legislation is about «state-run and private» management of the country's oil industry.

He said that talks with the Baghdad central government will include deals the Kurdish regional government struck last year with Austria's OMV AG and South Korea's SK Energy.

The Iraqi government considers these contracts illegal and seeks a centralized control over the country's oil resources. Because of the contracts, the Iraqi Oil Ministry has threatened to prevent international oil companies doing business in Kurdistan from opportunities elsewhere in Iraq.

But the Kurds maintain the deals _ mostly production-sharing agreements _ are in line with the Iraqi constitution.

Barzani said the OMV and South Korea contracts will be discussed with Baghdad, and added: «We don't think it has the right to stop the deals.

Kurdistan PM Barzani says Iraq should triple crude oil export capacity, agree on oil law

Talks on U.S.-Iraqi agreement suspended - UIC

An MP from the Daawa party of the Unified Iraqi Coalition (UIC) said on Tuesday that talks between Iraq and the U.S. on the proposed security pact have been suspended.

"The negotiations between the two countries were suspended because of several problems on the agreement's drafts," Hassan al-Sanied told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq (VOI).

"The two sides need to hear back from their superiors for more consultations, so the Iraqi side suggested the talks be suspended in order to make some consultations to agree upon political decisions which will serve both Iraq's national interest and its sovereignty," he explained.

On the schedule to resume the talks, he said " i believe that talks would be resumed after the two sides reach political decisions from their administrations," highlighting that Iraq seeks to finalize talks with Iraqi desire and interest.

He expected the Iraq will reject the agreement if the U.S. insisted on the draft it presented.

For his part, Haydar al-Abadi, a lawmaker from the UIC, said that "there are a number of disagreements between Baghdad and the U.S., mainly Iraq's insistence that the U.S. has to pay rent for the Iraqi lands used as bases and the country insists that these bases should be temporary.

A declaration of principles was signed between U.S. President George W. Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in December 2007. The declaration was planned to be ratified on July 31, 2008 to be effective as of January 1, 2009.

The agreement governs the U.S. forces' presence in Iraq after the year 2008. This presence currently relies on a mandate by the UN, renewed annually upon the request of the Iraqi government.

The agreement should not be effective except after endorsement by the 275-member Iraqi parliament, which comprises five political blocs, the Fadhila (Virtue) Party and the Sadrist Bloc, or Iraqis loyal to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr.

The proposed security pact with the United States is to replace the current UN mandate that expires at the end of this year.

Aswat Aliraq

Iraq rejects any article within long-term agreement violates sovereignty - spokesman

The official spokesman for the Iraqi government on Tuesday highlighted that the government asserted not to accept any article which violates the national sovereignty during negotiations to ink a long-term agreement with the U.S.

"During the regular session, the cabinet reviewed the government's stance from the underway talks with the United states on the long-term agreement," Ali al-Dabagh told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI).

"The cabinet asserted not to accept any article violates Iraq's sovereignty and its keenness to protect the country's security and properties," he added.

"The ministers agreed to support the negotiating delegation to maintain Iraq's sovereignty and interests," al-Dabagh explained.
"No agreements have been so far reached between the two sides," the spokesman highlighted.

A declaration of principles was signed between U.S. President George W. Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in December 2007. The declaration was planned to be ratified on July 31, 2008 to be effective as of January 1, 2009.

The agreement governs the U.S. forces' presence in Iraq after the year 2008. This presence currently relies on a mandate by the UN, renewed annually upon the request of the Iraqi government.

The agreement should not be effective except after endorsement by the 275-member Iraqi parliament, which comprises five political blocs, the Fadhila (Virtue) Party and the Sadrist Bloc, or Iraqis loyal to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr.

Aswat Aliraq

De Mistura to Present his Suggestions on Article 140

Staffan De Mistura, the Representative of the UN Secretary General in Iraq is going to present his suggestions on Kirkuk’s issue and the disputed areas to the Iraqi Presidency tomorrow in order to find suitable solutions for that question.

Concerning that above-mentioned issue Mrs. Narmin Othman, the deputy head of Article 140 Committee said:” Tomorrow, De Mistura will present his suggestions and steps concerning the implementation of Article 140.”

http://pukmedia.com/english/News/4-6-2008/news1.htm

Mustafa: PM’s Statement doesn’t Mean non-Implementing Article 140

Falah Mustafa, chief of KRG External Affairs said on behalf of KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani that the Kurds are ready to participate in the administration of Kirkuk City authorities side by side with Arabs, Turkmen, Chaldeans and Assyrians.

Mustafa said that PM Barzani always emphasized on this subject, and that the Kurds don’t want to be autocracies in Kirkuk after implementing Article 140.

He also mentioned that PM Barzani statement doesn’t mean non-implementing Article 140, because this article was part of the Iraqi Constitution that the Iraqi people said “yes” to it.

On the other hand, Mustafa called the Arab investors to invest in Kurdistan Region.

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Iraq's Asiacell to Spend $1 bln on Expansion

The Iraqi affiliate of Qatar Telecommunications Co QTEL.QA plans to invest $1 billion on expansion over the next two years as it seeks to boost its subscriber base across the country, its chairman said.

Asiacell Communications Co paid $1.25 billion for one of three ****** licences sold last August.

"We will invest another $1 billion over the next two years ... as the company is expanding across Iraq," he said on the sidelines of a conference in Dubai on Tuesday.

Asiacell, in which Qatar Telecom has a 30 percent stake, aims to increase its subscription base to six million from five million by the end of the year, Rasool told reporters.

A company shareholder said in August Asiacell could spend as much as $300 million a year to expand its network.

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Iraqi Cabinet Discusses the Agreement with U.S

The Iraqi government Tuesday said it had a "different vision" from the US over the deployment of American troops in the country beyond 2008 and vowed not to compromise national sovereignty.

Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the cabinet discussed the proposed Status of Forces Agreement which is scheduled to be concluded by next month and insisted that Iraq's national interests must be protected.

"A joint vision on this issue is yet to be achieved between the two sides, and ... the Iraqi side has a different vision, and it will not undercut or be negligent towards Iraqis' rights and sovereignty," Dabbagh said.

He said the cabinet had backed the Iraqi negotiating team which had already been asked by the national Security Council to ensure that national interests were not compromised.

"The Council of Ministers agreed unanimously on backing the Iraqi negotiating delegation in relation to adhering to the national principles, safeguarding Iraq's full sovereignty, and Iraq's control over national decisions and its people's interests," Dabbagh said.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and US President George W. Bush signed a non-binding statement of principles in November for the negotiations, which began in March with the aim of concluding a pact by the end of July.

The proposed agreement is aimed at giving a legal basis to US troops after the December 31 expiry of a UN mandate defining their current status.

There are currently about 150,000 US troops deployed in Iraq, which was invaded by US-led forces in March 2003.

The proposed pact has come under fire from religious and political leaders both in Iraq and in neighboring Iran with anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr vowing to keeping up protests until the deal is scrapped.

Dabbagh said the cabinet emphasized the full commitment to protecting Iraq's security, property, and resources in line with international resolutions and the level of protection currently provided.

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