The Iraqi cabinet yesterday passed the long-expected draft oil
law, a key move necessary to save the economy from further
depression.
"This law emerged from our national interests. It will unify all
component parts of the Iraqi people," Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki
told reporters, adding that it is a gift from the legislature to
all Iraqi people.
The draft law, now sent to the parliament for approval, intends
to distribute all oil income among the country's 18 provinces,
based on population size, and will allow foreign investors to
conduct business within the sector.
Iraq currently has a proven oil reserve of around 120 billion
barrels, ranking it third in the world. Most of the country's oil
fields are located in the Kurd-controlled north and
Shiite-dominated south.
The issue of distribution has restrained Iraq's national
reconciliation as the once-empowered Sunni Arabs, most of whom live
in resource-poor central and western Iraq, fear they will be
marginalized and denied their share of the oil wealth.
Almost all of the Iraqi national revenue is derived from oil
sales, despite insurgent attacks on the oil infrastructure.
(Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2007)
