Russia seeks expansion of economic ties with Iraq, Kurdistan Region: Consul

21-04-2024
Rudaw
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russia is open to expanding its economic activities in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, particularly in the oil and energy sectors, its consul general told Rudaw on Wednesday, with several Russian oil and gas companies holding large stakes in Baghdad and Erbil’s fields. 

“Russian-Iraqi relations are expansive, strong, and close in several sectors, including in the field of energy in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region,” Russian Consul General to Erbil Maxim Rubin told Rudaw’s Mushtaq Ramadhan on the sidelines of the Sulaimani Forum. 

“We are open to expanding Russian-Iraqi cooperation in all fields, and are ready to expand our relations and cooperation in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region,” he said. 

Iraq and the Kurdistan Region share close economic ties with Russia as a number of Russian oil companies operate in both the Region and in oilfields in southern Iraq. The two countries first established diplomatic relations in 1944. Lukoil, Gazprom Neft, and Rosneft are some of the major Russian oil and gas companies operating in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region. 

In December, Lukoil acquired an additional 20 percent of the massive Eridu oil field in southern Iraq’s Dhi Qar province after a Japanese company sold half its stake, bringing Lukoil’s stake in the field to 80 percent. 

Comments

Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.

To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.

We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.

Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.

Post a comment

Required
Required
 

The Latest

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani at the tomb of late Iraqi President Jala Talabani in Sulaimani on November 13, 2024. Photo: PM Sudani's office.

Iraqi PM talks KRG cabinet formation with Kurdish parties

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani on Wednesday paid separate visits to the winning parties in the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections and urged to expedite talks to form the new Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) cabinet, nearly a month after the Region’s elections took place.