Politics

Analysis: Worsening internal rivalries weaken KRG at key political juncture

Conflict between the KDP and PUK has driven dysfunction in Erbil and weakened Kurdish influence in Baghdad as a new government takes power.

Bafel Talabani, president of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (left), meets with newly elected Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (right), in Baghdad in May 2026. (Photo credit: Prime Minister's Office)

Jul 14, 2025

Q&A: Ali Shaddad al-Faris, MP and spokesperson for the Parliament Oil and Gas Committee

Longtime energy MP talks about U.S. pressure on Baghdad and Erbil, the blame he places on KRG oil tactics, and the upside of the sitting oil minister entering elections.

Jul 9, 2025

Baghdad-KRG stalemate continues over oil disputes

Budget transfers to Kurdistan have been frozen since May as negotiations to restart oil exports falter.

Jun 23, 2025

Iraqi oil sector weathers Iran conflict

Production and exports have not suffered major interruptions so far, but exodus of foreign oil workers and border closures highlight risks of disruption.

May 30, 2025

Baghdad threatens to choke off KRG funding

Political tensions skyrocket after recently announced gas deals, resulting in legal challenges and threats to Kurdistan's budget.

May 21, 2025

New KRG gas deals draw condemnation from Baghdad

U.S. firms HKN and WesternZagros have signed agreements for upstream gas development at the Miran and Topkhana fields.

May 1, 2025

BP deal aims to revamp Kirkuk energy sector

Iraq is once again leveraging upstream development to finance gas and power projects.

Apr 23, 2025

Iraq terminates Akkas contract, drawing legal threats

Cabinet taps state-run Midland Oil Company as operator for fast-track gas field development with help from SLB, but contentious ouster of Ukrzemresurs could spark litigation.

Apr 15, 2025

Q&A: Adnan al-Jaberi, deputy chairman of the Parliament Oil and Gas Committee

The Basra MP talks about the prospects for and obstacles to energy sector development in southern Iraq, Kirkuk, and Kurdistan.

Apr 3, 2025

Kurdistan crude export deadlock persists

Hard-liners in Baghdad appear to be rejecting compromise with oil companies in negotiations to reopen the northern pipeline to Turkey.

Mar 27, 2025

Q&A: Ahmad Salman, deputy president of Syria’s Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party

A veteran of Syria's oil sector — and a political leader in the oil-rich northeast — discusses negotiations with Damascus over the future of the country.