OPINION
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Iraq Needs Its No-Bid Oil Contracts
Deals aren't exploitative, argues energy adviser
By Kevin Spak
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Posted Jul 26, 08 3:15 PM CDT
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(Newser)
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US lawmakers have been raging against no-bid deals struck by foreign oil companies in Iraq—but impeding them would be pure folly, energy consultant Raad Alkadiri argues in the Washington Post. Most of these companies have already advised Iraq on its oil fields for free; Baghdad only sought to formalize the business with contracts, which aren't cupcake deals, either.
Iraq is fighting hard for its national interests, and US intervention would not be looked on kindly. "Obstructing the deals simultaneously conveys to Iraqis the image of direct U.S. interference in their sovereign affairs and the impression that America is somehow seeking to impede their country's recovery," Alkadiri writes.