US says Iraqi's to control oil choices

[bfp]

ROME - The Iraqi people and not the United States will decide if the country should accept OPEC (news - web sites) quotas on its oil production, the U.S. energy secretary insisted Thursday.



Iraq (news - web sites)'s exports are still far below prewar levels, but the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has been watching closely, concerned that a revival of Iraqi crude exports might flood the market with crude and drive down prices and revenues for oil exporters everywhere.


The United States, meanwhile, is taking care not to be seen as dictating Iraqi oil policy.


U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham (news - web sites) stressed Thursday that the Iraqis must eventually decide how to sell their oil.


"They have to decide how to take it: Do they want to work through OPEC, do they want to work such as countries like Mexico or Russia or other major oil producing countries work — not as part of OPEC but certainly as key players, often very vital parts of the international energy arena" among the possibilities, he said.


"We will not make that choice for them, that will be the decision of the people of Iraq."


Iraq is one of OPEC's 11 members but hasn't participated in the group's production quotas since 1990. Analysts say it could be a challenge for OPEC to reintegrate Iraq into its quota system, as other members of the group might be reluctant to pump less oil to accommodate exports from a resurgent Iraq.


Abraham, who spoke with reporters after discussions with his Italian counterpart on hydrogen technology, also rejected Democratic criticism that the Bush administration's policy of pumping oil into its emergency reserve was contributing to a surge in crude prices.


Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat of Michigan, urged Abraham in a letter Tuesday to suspend the oil shipments into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve immediately.


Abraham said Thursday that the administration intends "to continue to fill the reserves as we're doing."


He described the increase in the emergency reserve as "truly a drop in the oil bucket which could not conceivably have a significant impact on the price of oil."

[Adam D]

Great, Washington is artificially keeping prices high and robbing Iraq of its resources.

[Ash]

The US also said Iraq had weapons of mass destruction too.

[Krash]

Don't they need a democratically elected government for that to be effective?

like the shah of iran was the chosen leader of iran after the 1950's huh?

[Adam D]

Originally posted by Dropzone
like the shah of iran was the chosen leader of iran after the 1950's huh?

Only if you mean chosen by Washington.