Iraq Protests Reduction of Gas Exports from Iran; Islamic Republic Claims Technical Reasons

Following a significant reduction in gas exports from Iran to Iraq, the Iraqi Minister of Electricity will visit Iran next week to discuss the issue. The Iraqi Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that the Iranian side attributed the reduction in gas exports to 'technical issues' and emphasized that Tehran has no decision to reduce gas exports to Iraq. According to Reuters, 'Foad Hussein,' the Iraqi Foreign Minister, during a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Amir-Abdollahian, stated that the decrease in gas inflow from Iran would lead to reduced electricity production, increased blackouts, and disruptions in the daily lives of the Iraqi people. According to the spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity, over 40% of the country's electricity production relies on gas imported from Iran, and this issue will be particularly crisis-inducing during the hot summer months when temperatures reach 50 degrees Celsius and electricity consumption peaks. Iraq has over $11 billion in gas debt to Iran. Iraqi officials say that paying this debt is complicated due to U.S. sanctions on Iran. Iraq spends about $4 billion annually on gas and electricity imports from Iran. In April, the country signed a $27 billion investment partnership agreement with the French oil company Total to develop gas production projects. The ongoing challenge of currency transfer; the Central Bank of Iraq does not allow the transfer of dollars to Iran. The Oil Minister confirmed: the sale of Iranian oil and gas to Iraq in exchange for food and medicine and the collection of Iraq's $11 billion debt to Iran is shrouded in ambiguity. The payment from Iraq to Iran for gas may be blocked. The issue is whether to collect debts or barter.