25 July 2008 Tarek al-Hashemi, the head of the Iraqi Islamic Party, holds the highest Sunni political position in the current political setup as vice president and plays a major role in determining which way Sunni politics go. His most recent achievement is negotiating the return of Sunni ministers to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government this week, after a boycott that lasted for almost a year over differences on security…
Iraq: The Shiite View
25 July 2008 Iraqi Shiite Vice President Adel Abdul Mehdi does not disguise his and his party’s ambitions in establishing a semiautonomous region in southern Iraq, home to the country’s most abundant and biggest oil fields, in parallel to the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq, despite Sunni objections and warnings that the move would practically divide Iraq into three mini-states, with the southern region backed by influential Shiite neighbor Iran….
Al-Maliki: Iraq Ready To Step Up
18 July 2008 Feeling buoyant about beating back Al-Qaeda in Iraq and reining in Iraqi militias in southern Iraq and Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is now taking the initiative on the economic and diplomatic fronts. He wants to spur the much-delayed reconstruction efforts, including those in the oil sector, by moving the decision-making process from bureaucratic ministries to a new council with powers to award contracts. He also…
Iraq: Shell’s Entry Plan
2 May 2008 Royal Dutch Shell has never been shy when considering Iraq’s huge potential. Even when the country was under UN sanctions, company officials quietly traveled to and from Baghdad, fostering relations with oil ministry officials. Since the US-led invasion of 2003, it has pursued opportunities more aggressively, with a three-pronged strategy targeting the upstream in the north and south, and the gas sector. Now, Shell is seeking to…