Iraqi officials defend the “oil for gas” deal with Iran

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[size=52]Iraqi officials defend the “oil for gas” deal with Iran[/size]

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Iraq announced Tuesday that it would start bartering gas imported from Iran for crude and black oil
Iraqi officials defended the barter deal (oil for gas) that Baghdad concluded with Tehran earlier this week and said it did not violate US sanctions, according to the Associated Press.[/size]
[size=45]The agency quoted a senior political official close to the government of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia' al-Sudani as saying that the agreement provides for Iraq to send 250,000 barrels of crude oil to Iran per day.[/size]
[size=45]The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added that the US sanctions will not be violated because they apply to financial transactions, not barter deals.[/size]
[size=45]"However, Iraq did not officially notify Washington of the agreement," the official added.[/size]
[size=45]On the other hand, a State Department official told the Associated Press that the ministry had no comment on the barter deal.[/size]
[size=45]The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added that Washington is regularly following up with Baghdad on the issue of sanctions against Iran.[/size]
[size=45]Yasar al-Maliki, an analyst at the Middle East Economic Survey, says that cash-strapped Iran is pressing Baghdad to urge Washington to obtain exemptions.[/size]
[size=45]"With Iraq's inability to transfer funds due to sanctions imposed on the Iranian banking sector, Tehran is prioritizing its domestic customers," al-Maliki added.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Sudani announced, on Tuesday, that his country would start bartering gas imported from Iran for crude and black oil, in an attempt to circumvent the complex mechanism currently approved and negotiated with Washington in order not to conflict with US sanctions.[/size]
[size=45]Iraqi power stations depend heavily on Iranian gas, but due to US sanctions on Tehran, Baghdad cannot directly pay dues for importing gas from Iran. Rather, Tehran should use that money to buy food or health commodities.[/size]
[size=45]However, this mechanism is complex and often results in delays. Iran often cuts off supplies that cover a third of Iraq's needs, to urge Baghdad to pay its dues.[/size]
[size=45]On Thursday, a spokeswoman for the US State Department confirmed that the United States is seeking "to ensure that our sanctions against Iran do not harm Iraq."[/size]
[size=45]The spokeswoman, who preferred not to be named, said in a statement to Al-Hurra that there is "regular consultation with our Iraqi counterparts about the sanctions imposed on Iran, which are still in effect due to Iran's ongoing nuclear activities."[/size]
[size=45]And the spokeswoman stressed that "any claim that US sanctions on Iran make Tehran limit gas supplies to Iraq is a false claim."[/size]
[size=45]She said, "Iran's limitation of gas supplies aims to pressure and blackmail the Iraqi government and its people."[/size]
[size=45]And the spokeswoman concluded: "We do not have any comment at this time on reports of a barter arrangement between Iraq and Iran..and we refer you to the government of Iraq for further comments."[/size]
[size=45]In recent days, electricity rationing has increased in Iraq with the decline in Iranian gas supplies, at a time when temperatures in Baghdad and southern Iraq touched fifty degrees Celsius, which aroused great resentment among the population.[/size]
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