Kurdistan

The fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is unifying not only Baghdad and Arbil, but also the Kurds in Iraq and Syria, thereby creating a completely new Kurdish reality in the region.

The Turkish Petroleum Refineries Corporation (TÜPRAŞ) has bought 520,000 barrels of oil brought to market by the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız said late on Dec. 11.

Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region said Dec. 10 that 727 of its fighters have been killed in the conflict against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) since the jihadists launched their offensive in June.

A statement from the region's military forces, known as the peshmerga, said 3,564 members of the Kurdish security forces had also been wounded over the past six months.

Iraq's government reached a formal agreement on Dec. 2 with Kurdish regional authorities to end a protracted dispute over oil exports and budget payments to the semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

Turkey will only be able to attain its desired level of welfare by introducing micro reforms for its economy needs, Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said, declaring the Kurdish peace process as a key component to the reforms during an address in southeastern Turkey.

Iraq’s state oil marketer SOMO will sell its first cargoes out of the Turkish port of Ceyhan since March at the end of November after reaching a deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government last week, market sources said late Nov. 26.

The oil will be a blend of Kurdish crudes, the sources said.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has extended an invitation to Iraqi Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani to visit Turkey.

Davutoğlu spoke on the phone with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) leader Barzani separately on late Nov. 26 about the latest security situation in Kirkuk.

Iraqi Kurds have reached a critical point by starting to sell their own oil as well as making an accord with the Baghdad government, says Genel Energy chief Tony Hayward Kurds have created a real chance to make income for themselves by selling their own oil in Iraq and they will probably make more money by selling their own gas, Tony Hayward, the head of Genel Energy, one of the largest compan

Turkey is a guarantor for energy peace between Baghdad and Arbil, according to the head of an international energy company operating in Iraq.  

Turkey’s sole oil refiner Tüpraş will begin purchasing crude oil from northern Iraq shipped by pipeline and sold by the Iraqi state’s Oil Marketing Company (SOMO), Deputy General Manager Hasan Tan said on Nov. 21.

The oil will be transported to the Turkish Mediterranean port town of Ceyhan, Tan told reporters on the sidelines of an energy conference.