Iraq to Give Russia Priority in Oil Dealings: OfficialIraq will give priority to Russian companies in oil dealings, Faez Abdul Shahin, undersecretary of the Iraqi Oil Ministry, was quoted as saying by the Al-Ittihad weekly Saturday."We hope that our business dealings with Russia will increase not only in the oil sector, but also in other sectors," Shahin told the weekly. Calling Russia "a political ally and a friendly country," Shahin said Iraq decided to reward Russia with more business opportunities for its opposition to the so-called "smart sanctions." Early this month, Russia threatened to veto a proposal by Britain and the United States in a bid to tighten control over materials that can be used for military purposes. The "smart sanctions" proposal was therefore blocked at the United Nations Security Council, which instead agreed to extend the oil-for-food program for another five months ending November 30. The humanitarian program, now in its 10th phase, allows sanctions-stricken Iraq to sell crude and use part of the proceeds to buy food, medicine and other essentials to offset the impact of the 11-year-old sanctions. Iraq, under sweeping sanctions since its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, has firmly rejected the "smart sanctions" and demanded a total lifting of the embargo. President Saddam Hussein, appreciative of Russia's pro-Iraq stand, told visiting Russian envoy Nikolai Kartuzov on July 18 that his country wanted to increase economic cooperation with Russia. |
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