Friday, August 17, 2007
Al Rubaie Gives Jordanians Option Of Kirkuk’s Or Basrah’s Oil
Regional
(Al Mowaten Newspaper) - 16 AUG - Yesterday, National Security Advisor, Dr. Muwaffaq Al Rubaie, held a press conference in Amman to explain the results of his visit to Jordan. At the beginning of the conference, Al Rubaie confirmed that his visit was serious and frank. He added that he discussed the reasons behind the violence and said, “The violence in Iraq is because regional interests [conflicts] are being dealt with in Iraq. There is no sectarian war in Iraq but it is a war between extremists of all sects. Both countries have agreed that they are in one boat to fight Al Qaida, extremists and sectarianism. The threats to Iraq’s national security are threats to Jordan’s national security as well. Jordan supports Iraq’s political process and [Al Maliki’s] government.”
Regarding Iraq’s delay in implementing the agreement that was approved during the Jordanian PM’s visit to Iraq a year ago concerning providing Jordan with 50,000 barrels of oil a day at special prices, Al Rubaie said, “The security situation is the reason for delaying this agreement and the oil pipe line to Jordan has been sabotaged. We have presented two options to the Jordanians. These are to receive oil from either Basrah’s or Kirkuk’s oil fields. Basrah’s oil contains ingredients that are not compatible with Jordan’s refineries. We have been promised by the Jordanians that they will respond to us after studying the two options.” Al Rubaie concluded his statement saying, “The brothers in Jordan offered to support us and have promised that they will offer as much as they can to the Iraqis who are living in Jordan.”
Regarding Iraq’s delay in implementing the agreement that was approved during the Jordanian PM’s visit to Iraq a year ago concerning providing Jordan with 50,000 barrels of oil a day at special prices, Al Rubaie said, “The security situation is the reason for delaying this agreement and the oil pipe line to Jordan has been sabotaged. We have presented two options to the Jordanians. These are to receive oil from either Basrah’s or Kirkuk’s oil fields. Basrah’s oil contains ingredients that are not compatible with Jordan’s refineries. We have been promised by the Jordanians that they will respond to us after studying the two options.” Al Rubaie concluded his statement saying, “The brothers in Jordan offered to support us and have promised that they will offer as much as they can to the Iraqis who are living in Jordan.”
Labels: Basrah, Jordan, Kirkuk, Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i, oil, oilfields
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Ministers reject proposal to merge ministries
Politics
(Al-Sharqiyah) - The Council of Ministers has rejected a proposal by Prime Minister al-Maliki to merge security and intelligence bodies under a unified command, Al-Sharqiyah television reported on July 31. Al-Maliki reportedly sought to merge the intelligence services, the National Security and Interior ministries, and military intelligence into one centralized body under the command of National Security Adviser Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i. According to Al-Sharqiyah, al-Maliki asked ministers to vote on the proposal and it was rejected by a majority of attendees.
Labels: Council of Ministers, ministries, Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i, Nouri Al-Maliki
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Iraq, Saudi Arabia sign security agreements
Security
(Al-Iraqiyah) - Iraqi national security adviser Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i announced on July 15 that Iraq and Saudi Arabia have reached an agreement on coordinating antiterrorism operations, state-run Al-Iraqiyah television reported. "We are happy with the positive and constructive results which our talks and negotiations with our brothers in Saudi Arabia yielded," al-Rubay'i said.
"The heads of Iraqi agencies had several rounds of discussions and reached detailed agreements on security cooperation with their Saudi counterparts. We signed agreements on security and intelligence coordination and information exchange," he added. The Saudi daily "Okaz" also quoted al-Rubay'i as saying that Iraq's security is inseparable from regional security, and "whatever threatens neighboring countries, namely Saudi Arabia, constitutes a direct threat against Iraq."
Labels: Iraq, Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i, Saudi Arabia
