The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq announced it had signed a deal with the Russian state-owned oil corporation Rosneft that would allow the company to begin developing oil blocks worth a potential $400 million to the Kurds.
The announcement follows a turbulent week for the KRG, as the Iran-backed government in Baghdad launched an invasion into its territory and wrested Kirkuk, an oil-rich province, out of the Kurds’ hands. Iraqi officials claim the invasion was necessary following the KRG’s decision to hold a non-binding referendum asking its citizens whether they would support a path to independence from Iraq.
While many experts cite the Kurdish Peshmerga as the most effective ally of the United States against the Islamic State on the ground in Iraq, the Trump administration has refused to support the Kurds against the Iran-backed Shiite militias that have stormed Kirkuk, with President Donald Trump himself stating, “We’re not taking sides.”
Bloomberg reports that the Rosneft deal will allow the Russian oil company to develop five oil blocks in Kurdistan. The contract would give “Rosneft 80 percent of the projects, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. Rosneft may pay a fee of as much as $400 million, half of which could be repaid in oil pumped from the deposits.” READ MORE
