WEBVTT - Iraq's Prime Minister Talks ISIS and Oil

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio News.

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<v Speaker 2>My exclusive conversation with Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shira al Sudani.

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<v Speaker 2>I sat down with him in Berdad for a ranging

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<v Speaker 2>discussion on the nation's economy, oil production, and the region's

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<v Speaker 2>geopolitical challenges, and this first part of our interview. He

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<v Speaker 2>told me the time has come for US troops to

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<v Speaker 2>withdraw from Iraq as the nation moves away from the

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<v Speaker 2>coalition arrangement to bilateral agreements with other countries.

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<v Speaker 3>Bid At Hokuma Tibi barbanaj Hekumi.

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<v Speaker 1>My government started a government run program that was proposed

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<v Speaker 1>to Parliament and put to a vote after the Ministerial

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<v Speaker 1>Cabinet presented it. This was according to the constitutional measures.

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<v Speaker 1>Part of the ministerial program was ending the coalition's mission

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<v Speaker 1>after the justifications for its presence had ended. Today, Iraq

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<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty four is not the same as Iraq of

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<v Speaker 1>twenty fourteen. We have defeated dysh with our sacrifices in

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<v Speaker 1>the Iraqi people's position from all of its components and factions,

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<v Speaker 1>and with the support of the international community and friends.

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<v Speaker 1>And we do appreciate that we found that the justifications

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<v Speaker 1>ended and there is no longer a need for a

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<v Speaker 1>coalition of eighty six countries. We moved from a period

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<v Speaker 1>of wars to a period of stability. Dyesh doesn't pose

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<v Speaker 1>a threat to the state. It may be part of

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<v Speaker 1>the security challenges like drug trade and criminal offenses. It's

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<v Speaker 1>at that level. It's not equal to Dayish now a

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<v Speaker 1>group of terrified people hiding in caves in the desert,

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<v Speaker 1>in the mountains, and the real threat to security and stability.

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<v Speaker 1>Based on this vision and evaluation, we initiated a conversation

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<v Speaker 1>with our friends in the Internet National Coalition, and it

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<v Speaker 1>was honest and included more discussions on various levels, and

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<v Speaker 1>was culminated with my visit to Washington, d c. And

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<v Speaker 1>talking to President Biden. We formed the Joint Committee in

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<v Speaker 1>August of twenty twenty three between military commanders to start

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<v Speaker 1>the conversation, and in fact, the committee reached an understanding

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<v Speaker 1>to arrange for that withdrawal. It was hoped that the

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<v Speaker 1>conclusion would be announced, but out of our keenness not

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<v Speaker 1>to mix things or create a misunderstanding about the end

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<v Speaker 1>of the coalition's mission, the desire was to postpone the

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<v Speaker 1>announcement and we hope to announce it soon and we

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<v Speaker 1>will take part in an international conference for the Coalition

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<v Speaker 1>against dish or terrorism. And Iraq is a genuine member

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<v Speaker 1>that lead the ranks to face terrorism. Ending the coalition's

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<v Speaker 1>mission and this is an important point, does not mean

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<v Speaker 1>a breakdown between Iraq and the coalition countries including the

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<v Speaker 1>United States. On the contrary, at the same time, we

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<v Speaker 1>are in bilateral talks to build a sustainable security relationship

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<v Speaker 1>other than the economic, cultural, and scientific and social ties.

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<v Speaker 2>You say that ISIS is less of a threat, and

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<v Speaker 2>yet on Friday, since common ounts that a raid was

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<v Speaker 2>conducted in western Iraq, US military alongside Iraqi security officials

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<v Speaker 2>killed some senior ISIS commanders. That tells me that the

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<v Speaker 2>ISIS threat is still there.

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<v Speaker 1>No, no, of course, this was one of the quality

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<v Speaker 1>operations that was executed between security agencies and the international coalition.

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<v Speaker 1>This is proof daesh or. This is proof that the

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<v Speaker 1>security agencies have reached the phase of capability where they

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<v Speaker 1>started finding these people in caves in mountains, in deserted

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<v Speaker 1>areas and killed them. This is proof of the level

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<v Speaker 1>of ability and capability that our security forces have reached.

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<v Speaker 1>Dyash today doesn't own a land or an area to

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<v Speaker 1>be in and has lost its incubator. And this is

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<v Speaker 1>the fundamental win achieved. Following up on the cells of

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<v Speaker 1>these individuals doesn't mean that there is a real threat.

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<v Speaker 1>When we used to talk about Dyash, Dyash used to

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<v Speaker 1>hold areas, villages and cities, and today Dash doesn't have

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<v Speaker 1>this existence except for these isolated groupings in deserted areas.

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<v Speaker 2>There's a US presidential election coming up very soon. What

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<v Speaker 2>would you like to see out of the next US president,

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<v Speaker 2>be it President Harris or President Trump.

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<v Speaker 3>Riki.

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<v Speaker 1>Of course, we respect the choice of the American people

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<v Speaker 1>according to the democratic process. We will deal with any

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<v Speaker 1>administration that gains confidence. It's of interest to us to

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<v Speaker 1>activate strategic framework that was signed in two thousand and

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<v Speaker 1>eight and building of relationship based on these principles of

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<v Speaker 1>mutual interests and respecting Iraqi sovereignty.

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<v Speaker 2>President Trump has been historically very hawkish on Iran. Do

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<v Speaker 2>you worry that a return of President Trump could be

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<v Speaker 2>even more destabilizing for the region.

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<v Speaker 1>For our understanding of the situation of the relationship between

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<v Speaker 1>Iraq and Iran is based on mutual interests and mutual respect.

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<v Speaker 1>Iran is a neighboring country and we share one four

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<v Speaker 1>hundred kilometers and that's in our interest to have a

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<v Speaker 1>close relationship, especially that Iran has been supportive of the

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<v Speaker 1>political process and our efforts in combating terrorism. Of course,

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<v Speaker 1>Iraq is the only country in the region that has

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<v Speaker 1>a special relationship between Iran and the United States, and

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<v Speaker 1>we try through this positive characteristic to help in bringing

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<v Speaker 1>opinions closer. And we are interested to have stability in

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<v Speaker 1>the region away from the access policy. We don't want

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<v Speaker 1>the tense relationships and the stances of other countries of

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<v Speaker 1>the world to impact the Iraqi situation. This is our

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<v Speaker 1>diplomatic effort and movements in terms of our bilateral and

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<v Speaker 1>regional ties.

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<v Speaker 2>Now for more from my exclusive interview with Iraq's Prime Minister,

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<v Speaker 2>Mohamashia al Sudani. The Prime Minister told me his country

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<v Speaker 2>is fully committed to opek's decisions, despite not adhering to

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<v Speaker 2>quote us during our conversation. He also discussed Iraq resuming

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<v Speaker 2>oil exports via a pipeline to the Turkish port is

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<v Speaker 2>Shayan more than a year after its closure.

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<v Speaker 3>Muhimaf ob Obuku plas.

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<v Speaker 1>Iraq is an important country in OPEK and OPEK Plus,

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<v Speaker 1>and we coordinate with our brothers, especially our brothers in

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<v Speaker 1>the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We are committed to voluntary

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<v Speaker 1>cuts and there war issues that the brothers understood in

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<v Speaker 1>terms of the slight increase in production and the rock

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<v Speaker 1>committed to compensating for that, and we began in August

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<v Speaker 1>of this year. We are committed to the decisions of

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<v Speaker 1>OPEC and OPEC Plus in a way that protects the

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<v Speaker 1>price of oil and this balance between the interest of

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<v Speaker 1>the producers and consumers.

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<v Speaker 3>Almost you.

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<v Speaker 2>Say that you will start introducing compensations, Where is that

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<v Speaker 2>going to come from?

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<v Speaker 1>But a helpful intelligent we started reducing the domestic production

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<v Speaker 1>and reducing the exports in a clear way in the

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<v Speaker 1>oil market.

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<v Speaker 2>Can you talk to me about the future of the

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<v Speaker 2>pipeline from Kurdistan. It's been shut off for several months now.

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<v Speaker 2>You've talked about the possibility of the resumption of gas

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<v Speaker 2>going through that pipeline. Can you give us a timeline

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<v Speaker 2>on it, and also again what that would do to

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<v Speaker 2>your own role production. Given what we were just talking about.

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<v Speaker 2>Via the vis vid Opek.

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<v Speaker 3>Quotas, Muskimas and Google Turkey.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's understand the problem with the Iraqi Turkish oil pipeline.

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<v Speaker 1>The export stopped from Sahan after the decision from the

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<v Speaker 1>International Court in Paris over a lawsuit filed by the

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<v Speaker 1>former Iraqi governments over exporting oil without somo's approval. And

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<v Speaker 1>then we faced another problem, and that's a legal issue,

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<v Speaker 1>and they were decisions by the Federal Court regarding oil

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<v Speaker 1>contracts in Kurdistan Region and the budget law that fixed

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<v Speaker 1>the average cost of producing a barrel that doesn't surpass

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<v Speaker 1>eight dollars for every barrel, whereas fixed production cost in

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<v Speaker 1>the oil contracts of oil companies with Kurdistan Region is

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<v Speaker 1>over twenty six dollars. We are now in front enough

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<v Speaker 1>two options only. We either amend the contracts, which is

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<v Speaker 1>what the company is dealing with the Kurdistan Region had rejected,

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<v Speaker 1>or we amend the budget law and this requires political agreement.

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<v Speaker 1>Iraq is keen to resolve this problem. We are missing

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<v Speaker 1>the production capacity from this strategic important line and we

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<v Speaker 1>are keen on investing in existing oil and the work

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<v Speaker 1>of the companies. There are ongoing talks with the companies

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<v Speaker 1>and with brothers in the Kurdistan Region and we hope

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<v Speaker 1>to reach a solution based on the legal paths that

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<v Speaker 1>I mentioned.

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<v Speaker 2>Could it happen this year?

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<v Speaker 1>Possible? Possible.

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<v Speaker 3>That was my

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<v Speaker 2>Exclusive interview with the Iraqi Pane Ministermashya Al Sudani.