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Iraq Demands Six-Month Renewal To Resume Oil Exports
BAGHDAD, June 3 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Iraq said Sunday it would only resume oil exports under a regular six-month renewal of the UN oil-for-food program, after rejecting a one-month extension decided by the Security Council.
"Iraq will not resume exports unless oil-for-food is renewed for six months," Iraqi Oil Minister Amer al-Rashid told a press conference.
The Iraqi minister also demanded that the renewal should not be "linked to the US-British project" to impose a system of "smart" sanctions to modify the embargo in force since Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait, news agencies reported.
"Exports will resume when the oil-for-food program is renewed, keeping in with the accord between Iraq and the United Nations concluded in 1996," when the program was launched, Rashid said.
Iraq announced Saturday the halt in oil exports, starting June 4, displaying rejection of the UN's one-month extension of the oil-for-food program.
Iraq's decision to cut exports came a day after the UN Security Council extended the program by one month to give the 15-member organization time to reform the 11-year-old sanctions regime against Baghdad.
Saudi Arabia stepped in swiftly after the Iraqi announcement with an offer to compensate for any shortfall on the world market, AFP said.
Iraq has stopped pumping oil to Turkey on Saturday in line with its decision to halt oil exports from Monday when the current phase of the UN oil-for-food program runs out, a senior Turkish official said, Anatolia news agency reported.
However, Rashid clarified that oil exports to Jordan and Turkey outside the confines of the program would not be affected by Iraq's decision to stop pumping crude under UN supervision.
Iraq will not honor outstanding contracts under the current six-month phase of the program, which runs out on June 4, until "after the resumption of oil exports," the Iraqi minister said.
After a break in exports at the start of the latest term, Baghdad still has outstanding commitments to ship almost 300 million barrels of oil, or around 135 days of exports at the current rate of 2.2 million barrels per day.
Iraq had previously said it would honor the commitments with or without a renewal of the UN program, which allows Baghdad to export crude to finance essential goods for a 22-million population, AFP reported.
Sanctions were imposed on Iraq after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
Iraq has continuously called upon the international community to ease the impact of sanctions that has led to the deterioration in Baghdad's economy and the suffering of the impoverished Iraqi population.
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