Posted on 14-7-2003
Iraq
Invasion Part II - Oil Ownership
Letter to General Flowers from US Senator Henry A. Waxman
Dear General Flowers:
I am writing to inquire about U.S. plans to mortgage
Iraq's oil to pay for contracts with private companies like
Halliburton and Bechtel.
For many months, opponents of the war in Iraq have been
arguing that the real purpose of the war was to obtain control
for the United States over the vast oil fields in Iraq. In response,
the Administration has consistently said that Iraqi oil belongs
to the Iraqi people. Recently, for example you wrote me:
Iraqis will make all decisions about how much oil and
refined products to produce, when and where to produce for the
domestic market and how to distribute the product...Iraqis will
decide for themselves all matters relating to development, production,
sale and distribution of Iraqi petroleum products.
The Wall Street Journal has reported, however, that the
United States is considering a plan to mortgage Iraq's oil to
pay for the costs of reconstruction. Such an arrangement would
commit future oil revenue from Iraqi wells to paying the expenses
of major U.S. contractors operating in Iraq. This policy would
appear to conflict fundamentally with the claim that Iraq's
oil belongs to the Iraqi people. In effect, the country's oil
revenues would belong to Halliburton, Bechtel and the other
large U.S. corporations operating in Iraq.
Not suprisingly, the Wall Street Journal reports that
this proposal "has the enthusiastic backing" of Halliburton
and Bechtel. According to the Wall Street Journal, this plan
has been advocated by the Coalition for Employment Through Exports,
a U.S. business group whose members include Halliburton, Bechtel
and other large contractors in Iraq. This group has been "knocking
on doors throughout the Bush Administration" to promote
the mortgage proposal.
I am writing to request information about this plan to
mortgage Iraq's oil. In particular, I am interested in the role,
if any, that Halliburton and other companies working in Iraq
may have played in shaping this plan. Specifically, I request
that you:
1. Describe the plan being considered to securitize Iraq's
oil, including details such as the duration of the plan and
the amount of Iraqi oil involved;
2. Identify all contacts concerning this plan between
the Corps and any nongovernmental party or its representative(s);
3. Provide copies of all records (including telephone
records, notes and any other form of written or electronic communication)
related to item 2 above.
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