[Texgreen] Sec of state Rice can predict the future

[Roger Baker]

[She  knows ahead of time what the Iraq oil laws will say. Kurds =20
under law (yet to be written) will have no right to the oil under =20
their land. -- Roger]


http://www.kurdmedia.com/news.asp?id=3D13878

US Secretary of State: Kurds have no authority over oil in their region
1/12/2007   KurdishMedia.com

London (KurdishMedia.com) 12 January 2007: U.S. Secretary of State =20
Condoleezza Rice stated that Kurds do not have the right over oil in =20
their areas, Reuters reported on Thursday.

On the issue of the ownership of oil Reuters stated, =93Ethnic Kurds =20
whose region includes the country's northern oil fields including the =20=

giant Kirkuk field have signed some contracts with foreign oil =20
companies, spurring confusion over who has the authority to ink =20
contracts.=94

Rice said the oil law would not give the Kurds such authority.

"Even though the Kurds might have been expected ... to insist that =20
they will simply control all the resources themselves, that's not =20
what the oil law does," Rice said.

Rice predicted what would be in the Iraqi oil law. She was not asked =20
how she knew what is in the law that is not yet written.

The KRG insists that the Iraqi constitution gives the right of =20
ownership of oil in Kurdistan Region to the Kurds. Rice dose not =20
think so. This could end the Kurdish dream of owning their own oil.

What Rice stated is elaboration of what President Bush stated in his =20
speech on Wednesday, relating to his =93new=94 strategy in Iraq. Bush =20=

stated, =93To give every Iraqi citizen a stake in the country's =20
economy, Iraq will pass legislation to share oil revenues among all =20
Iraqis.=94

The implication is very serious. This means that any oil contract =20
that is signed by the KRG is not valid.

It appears that the Kurdish honeymoon is over.

Rice was testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on =20
U.S. President George W. Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq. =20
Rice tried to assure impatient U.S. lawmakers that Iraqi officials =20
are making progress on the hydrocarbon law.=20=