RSS« Blair: Sexing up Iraq | Iraq - Bush Admin Fantasy Land »
August 26, 2003
DoD, blind fools: Pushing the Iraq-Israel pipeline like morons
Following on comments I made yesterday in comments, this story rather confirms the sheer idiocy of the US Department of Defence and why they need to be removed from the picture.
These fools are driven by blind Israelophilia and a complete insensitivity to the political realities, as well as the commercial and financial realities. Reviving such trade makes sense in a longer term picture where relations are stabilized. Forcing this now, when rumours of Israeli troops in Iraq are rampent, where a huge percentage of the population is paranoid about an Israelo-American grab of the oil wealth, and in a situation of generalized instability and lack of financing for extent operational oil facilities is pure idiocy, madness and incompetence, although plays well to the blind Sharonista-Israelophiles in the DoD.
It strikes me as extraordinarily stupid. First, the pipeline has been abandoned since 1948. Second, a key host country, Jordan, is against the concept. Third, I have read commercial analyses suggesting that building a new modern pipeline is more viable than attempting to rehab this derelict thing. Fourth, politically it is utterly wrong - it sends the wrong message at the wrong time, and is worse for that in that it is not commercially viable. Fifth, without a secure environment, there is no basis for financing the same, and given the political risk (attacks, etc) on top of the excessive cost and financing needs for other operational routes, this is unfinancable.
These people are morons -- well let me be more fair, they are ignorant fools who do not understand either the region or business or economics or financing to boot.
US Pushes for Revival of Iraq-Israel Pipeline.
http://www.menareport.com/story/TheNews.php3?sid=257040&lang=e&dir=mena
August 25, 2003
US pushes for revival of Iraq-Israel oil pipeline
The US Department of Defense sent a telegram to the Israel Ministry of Foreign affairs last week, proposing the re-opening of the oil pipeline between Iraq and Israeli oil refineries in Haifa.
The new oil channel would restore the pipeline that ran for hundreds of kilometers between Kirkuk in Iraq and the Haifa Port before the establishment of the Jewish state in 1948. After the end of the British mandate, Iraq stopped the flow of oil to Israel and the pipeline, only eight inches in diameter, was abandoned.
In the telegram, the Department of Defense requested a detailed reconstruction plan from Israeli officials. According to Globes, Israel’s Minister of National Infrastructures Joseph Paritzky is in favor of the project, however consent from the Jordanian government is necessary before plans can move foreword seeing as the pipeline would run through the Kingdom’s territory.
The Jordanian government is against the plan, calling it unrealistic in view of the fact that the cost of repairs will be high and that a long period would be required to re-construct the pipeline, which is now filled with sand.
The new link would take oil from the northern area of Kirkuk and transport it via Mosul to Jordan and then to Israel. According to Israel’s National Infrastructure Ministry, the cost of a 42-inch diameter pipeline between Kirkuk and Haifa would cost approximately $400,000 per kilometer. Paritzky plans to discuss the pipeline project with the US Secretary of Energy during a possible visit to Washington in September."
Posted by The Lounsbury at August 26, 2003 10:09 AM
Filed Under:
Jan-Dec 2003
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.aqoul.com/movabletype/mt-tb.cgi/1604
