Barzani - "enough is enough"https://www.kurdishglobe.net/display-article.html?id=E9BCEB9FD52A12CD57A0D8E35DC8CEA5
Barzani on 24th March 2012 :-
"Power-sharing and partnership between Kurds, Sunni and Shi ite Arabs, and others is now completely non-existent and has become meaningless. The Iraqi Constitution is constantly violated and the Erbil agreement, which was the basis upon which the current government was formed, has been completely ignored. As soon as they came to power, they disregarded the Constitution, the previous agreements that we had, and the principle of power-sharing."
... "None of the KRG contracts with foreign oil companies is unconstitutional. The main reason behind this dispute with Baghdad is not a question of legality of the contracts; rather it is that they don't want to see the KRG make progress and stride forward."
..."It is time to say enough is enough. The current status of affairs in unacceptable to us and I call on all Iraqi political leaders to urgently try and find a solution otherwise we will return to our people and will decide on whatever course of action that our people deem appropriate."
Interesting speach by Barzani, IMO this is more than just KRG posturing, if Baghdad are not paying the KRG for exported Oil, creaming off $1billlion in KRG oil they claim not to have accounted for and continue to attempt to sabotage further development of the Kudistan Oil industry in warning off majors and investors - and in particular Exxon investment, then i personally think there is a very serious chance at the very least the KRG put a vote on independence to the people which either FINALLY spurs Baghdad into forced action on the O&G law to subdue Kurd break away threat, or Kurdistan actually break and go it alone.
Some on the board suggest a break for the KRG is not a good thing for SP and i appreciate there are many risks but can it get much worse than the current situation? You can find the biggest oil field in the world but if the KRG are not getting paid for the oil and Baghdad can just 'lose' $1billion of oil exports of the books then where's the value in that?
To realize the true longer term potential of the Kurd oil plays IMO requires a Kurdistan break to really develop to full potential and give the Majors confidence in the legality of their investments and getting paid, IMO it is not a question of if the KRG should breakaway but when. Sure there will be short term SP volatility but huge long term, realizable gains.