The U.S. Expresses Satisfaction with Iraq's Progress in Reducing Dependence on Iranian Gas

The United States welcomes Iraq's efforts to reduce its dependence on Iranian natural gas and the country's pursuit of energy independence. Vedant Patel, Deputy Spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, stated in a press conference on Thursday, May 17, that Iraq's actions so far have been 'very significant.' Reducing Iraq's reliance on Iranian energy is part of the Biden administration's strategy to increase pressure on the Islamic Republic. The U.S. estimates that Iraq has doubled its electricity production over the past decade. The country also connected to Jordan's electricity grid in March and will complete other projects this year. Reducing Iraq's dependence on Iran will also benefit the Biden administration domestically, as it will lessen criticisms regarding the granting of sanctions waivers to Iraq for importing electricity from Iran. Jeffrey Payette, Director of the U.S. State Department's Office of Energy Resources, met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani in Baghdad on Wednesday to discuss the use of natural gas from the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Cooperation between the central government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan region is essential for Iraq's energy independence. For this reason, Payette also visited the Kurdistan region. Another potential source of gas for Iraq is the gas that is wasted and flared during crude oil extraction. Payette met with companies and government officials in Baghdad to discuss ways to utilize this gas for energy production. The United States hopes that by reducing Iraq's dependence on Iran, it can further integrate the country into the international community and assign some responsibilities to Iraq, one of which is to help fill the gap left by Russia in supplying gas to Europe.