Thread: Iraq/Dinar News. 09/05 to 01/14/07

ÌÑíÏÉ ÇáÕÈÇÍ - ÇáäÝØ ÊÊÎÜÐ ÅÌÑÇÁÇÊ áÊÍÜÓíä æÒíÜÇÏÉ ÅäÊÇÌ ÇáÈÜäÒíä Ýí ãÕÜÝì ÇáÜÏæÑÉ

Political first : oil take action to improve and increase the production of gasoline in the Al-Dawra refinery

Baghdad-Tariq Al-Araji The Ministry of Oil has concluded a contract with the Italian (STP) for the establishment of a new Azmerh-Dawra refinery to improve the quality of the input material in the manufacture of gasoline that total refinery production of gasoline more than ten million liters a day after rehabilitating a number of production units in a number of them. An official source at the Oil Ministry told (morning) : the Ministry of Oil contracted an Italian (STP) for the addition of a new unit of the refinery to manufacture the units involved in a better article for the manufacture of gasoline. He added that the ministry had contracted with a number of companies to add new production units of the refinery to reach productive capacity of 180 thousand barrels per day, particularly since the design capacity of the refinery at about 110 thousand barrels per day and the ministry is seeking to increase the production capacity of the refinery to more than 180 thousand barrels a day in future . According to the source, the Al-Dawra refinery production rates currently stable after the rehabilitation of the oil pipeline linking mechanism that has been subjected to acts of sabotage earlier. On the other hand, an Oil Ministry that the production of refineries in the whole country has now reached more than ten million liters of gasoline after the rehabilitation of a number of production units in a number of refineries. An official source in the ministry : The rate of production of petrol in the refineries in the continuing spiral, as well as reach of this article from the neighboring countries, adding that the ministry has adopted several measures to increase Alstratiji stockpiling of gasoline to avoid the crisis processing citizens to this article. He added that the Baiji refinery which is the largest refineries in the country has the potential to save about ten million liters of gasoline but the difficult security conditions in that region is preventing the implementation of this plan. He pointed out that large quantities of various oil derivatives, available in stores liquidator only carriers and tank drivers are reluctant to transfer and for exposure to the threat and targeted by terrorist elements.

ERBIL, Iraq, 29 October 2006 (Wall Street Journal)

Unlike Baghdad, 200 miles away, the air here does not echo with the sound of gunfire, car bombs and helicopters. Residents of this city of a million people picnic by day in pristine new parks and sip tea with friends and relatives at night. American forces are not "occupiers" or the "enemy," but "liberators." Mentioning President Bush evokes smiles--and not of derision.

American forces were "most welcome" when stationed here at the start of the invasion of Iraq, says Massoud Barzani, the president of Kurdistan in the north. Not a single U.S. soldier was killed in his region, he adds proudly, "not even in a traffic accident." Would U.S. forces be welcome back now? "Most certainly," he declared this week in an interview in his newly minted marble (and heavily chandeliered) palace. The more American soldiers the better, a top aide confirms.

The secret of Kurdistan's relative success so far--and of America's enduring popularity here--is the officially unacknowledged fact that the three provinces of the Kurdish north are already quasi-independent. On Oct. 11, Iraq's parliament approved a law that would allow the Sunni and Shiite provinces also to form semi-autonomous regions with the same powers that the constitution has confirmed in Kurdistan. And while Kurdish leaders pay lip-service to President Bush's stubborn insistence on the need for a unified Iraq with a strong centralized government, Kurdistan is staunchly resisting efforts to concentrate economic control in Baghdad.

Read the rest of the interview: Kurdistan: A conversation with the president of Iraq's most successful region.

Kurdistan: A conversation with the president of Iraq’s most successful region | Iraq Updates

http://www.iraqdirectory.com/DisplayNews.aspx?id=2427

Higher fuel prices Affect on the living situation
Higher fuel prices Affect on the living situation
29/10/2006
Source: Dar Al-Hayat


The few days that preceded Eid Al-Fitr, were a suitable occasion to picture the difficult living situation of Iraqi people after the prices of all goods and services went sky high, which made Iraqis recall years, not long ago, thought to have been forgotten.

Transport wages, that doubled due to the rise in the prices of oil derivatives, have led to a situation can no longer citizens deal with its results because of the disproportionate daily income with the reality of the new prices and the repercussions of inflation, which is constantly increasing.

Citizen, Rifaat Sahib, a government employee, referred to the suffering of a large segment of his colleagues, by saying: "the suffering is real and unprecedented in the lives of people especially that the increase in the salaries of government employees is no longer effective because of the high levels of inflation ». He adds: "Those who shape the country's economic policy should take into account the conditions of the citizen, racked by inflation, in addition to the growing numbers of the poor".

Worker, Ali Fadhil, says he never thought "the Iraqi government, he voted for in the elections, would disappoint him and raise the prices of oil derivatives, which was the beginning of the deterioration of the people's living, especially after suffering from a lack of electricity, and made us, worry about the future". Fadhil says that the rise in the prices of oil derivatives "made life crises continue, even the salary increases, which included employees of the State were all eaten by the rise in the prices of fuels and the scarcity of electric current, unemployment and depression".

Mohammad Shakir, a transport company owner, says that the impact of increased fuel prices reached all sectors, especially the transport sector. He says that transportation is "the balance of trade activity, that whenever its prices are appropriate, the prices of goods will be lower. As we previously experienced, the citizen used to tour the markets and do his shopping at prices that suit everyone ».

Teacher, Jawad Mohammed, wonders: "how can I afford the expenses of my family, consisting of five members, and my salary does not exceed 200 thousand dinars? He adds: "in simple calculation, we need more than 100 thousand dinars per month for transport fares, me and my two sons, the students".

Radio Nawa

The nationality and the conditions of the city of Nasiriyah continue to exchange cards Civil Status

Said head of the nationality and the conditions of the city of Nasiriyah Hulail Hrejeh that "the elections continue to disburse the cards Civil Status and a rate of 100 cards a day." Hrejeh stressed in a press statement that "the Chamber provide other services to reviewers, they are indexing cases of marriage and divorce and adjust ages and names and titles and endorsements providing health information." Auditors called to the need to abide by the instructions to complete their transactions correctly, also attending personally called for the completion of those transactions. "

NOAA
10 / 29 / 2006

I don't know who quoted this. But Shahrastani is the Iraqi minister, NOT the Egyptian!
Quote:
Iraq hopes to complete the first round of the award of contracts for the development of oil fields

Egyptian Minister of Petroleum (Hussein Shahrastani), "Iraq hopes to complete the first round of the award of contracts for the development of oil fields by the end of next year." He said Shahrastani, who is now in Australia, in a press statement that "many oil companies expressed willingness to begin to discuss possible ways of cooperation even before the issuance of the law Alastth Mar new. " He pointed out that "the regional balance of the development of oil fields in the matter, because the government wants the oil to be a factor for unification of the whole country."

NOAA
10 / 29 / 2006


Radio Nawa

More confusion here.

CURRENCY CONVERSION AND TRANSFER POLICIES
The currency of Iraq is the Dinar (ID - sometimes referred to as the New Iraqi Dinar). Iraq's current exchange system is characterized as a free foreign exchange system, with no restrictions on purchases or sales of foreign currencies. The Iraqi currency is fully convertible and can be exchanged freely with any other currency. In addition, there is free movement of capital without restrictions on capital inflows and outflows. Iraq's foreign exchange regime is also a multi-currency system in which foreign currencies circulate in the market and are accessible to everyone

Iraq

MMmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

29 October 2006 (AP Worldstream)

Ahmad Chalabi, a former Pentagon favorite who was once Iraq's deputy prime minister, urged the United States to open talks with Iran, saying that it could help reduce sectarian violence in Iraq and allow U.S. forces to withdraw.

Chalabi, who helped the Bush administration gather intelligence about Saddam Hussein's alleged unconventional weapons program and ties to al-Qaida ahead of the 2003 invasion, told The Associated Press on Saturday that he understood why many Americans and Britons have lost patience.

He cited the rise in American deaths and sectarian violence, and the fact that the main grounds for the invasion turned out to be false. But, he said, "it is indisputable that Saddam was an evil force and that he had links to terrorist organizations."

In an interview at his house in central London, Chalabi _ a moderate secularist Shiite _ criticized secret talks between Iraq's Sunni Arab-led insurgency and U.S. officials, saying they would not help stabilize Iraq's fragile government, reduce violence or pave the way for U.S. forces to leave Iraq.

"If America enhances the Iraqi army, improves its intelligence, gives Iraqis and their government more authority, and opens talks with neighbors such as Iran, coalition forces could begin their withdrawal in less than two years," said Chalabi, who lives primarily in Baghdad.

"Iran and Turkey, both powerful neighbors of Iraq, must be involved in the process to help Iraq's security situation improve and its democratic process and economy develop," Chalabi said.

But Chalabi urged Americans and Britons to give the Iraqi government _ struggling to resolve divisions among Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds _ time to strengthen and show the Arab world that democracy is possible.

"We have to defeat al-Qaida, and we have to defeat the Saddamists. That's possible to do, and it has to be done before we can establish peace in Iraq," said Chalabi, chairman of the government's Supreme National DeBaathification Commission.

In some ways, Chalabi's many roles in the liberation and governance of Iraq are an indication of its chaotic transformation.

Chalabi, a Shiite who turns 62 on Monday, is head of the opposition Iraqi National Congress, which was created in 1992 with the goal of overthrowing Saddam. He was funded by the U.S. government ahead of the 2003 invasion, and among many tasked with looking for information about Saddam's possible ties to al-Qaida and his unconventional weapons program.

He briefly served as Iraq's interim oil minister in 2005 and was a deputy prime minister in 2005-2006. But Chalabi and his INC failed to win a single seat in December 2005 parliamentary elections, and he was not named to a post in Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Cabinet.

In addition, Chalabi was convicted in absentia in 1992 by a Jordanian military court of embezzlement, fraud and breach of trust after a bank he ran collapsed with about $300 million in missing deposits. Chalabi, who denies wrongdoing, was sentenced to 22 years in prison in Jordan but has yet to serve a day.

During the interview, Chalabi sided with U.S. analysts who have suggested that the United States should encourage a reconciliation conference, bringing in not only Iraqis but also countries such as Iran and Turkey.

Earlier this year, the Americans offered low-level talks with mostly Shiite Iran on the situation in Iraq, but Tehran refused.

The U.S. is concerned that the Iranians could link cooperation in Iraq with American acceptance of their nuclear program, which Tehran insists is for peaceful purposes. Washington suspects the Iranians want to build a nuclear weapon.

Chalabi said the need for a new U.S. policy toward Iraq became painfully obvious when the American military recently acknowledged that its efforts to stop sectarian violence involving insurgents and militias in Baghdad had failed.

The coalition has accused Iran of arming insurgents and Shiite militias, but Chalabi, like other officials, believes that the United States should take advantage of Iran's established links with Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish politicians and groups of all kinds in Iraq in an effort to promote its national interests.

Many Shiite groups now influential in Iraq's government _ such as the Dawa Party and the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, or SCIRI _ were based in Iran or operated from there during Saddam's rule.

Chalabi said Iran would favor close ties with a stable Shiite-controlled government in Iraq, if it believed the United States was not planning to use the country as a base to contain Iran or attack its nuclear program.

"We need better diplomacy and negotiation right now, not only between U.S. and Iraqi forces and Iraq's Sunnis and Shias, but also with neighbors such as Iran and Turkey," Chalabi said.

Chalabi urges U.S. to open talks with Iran to reduce Iraq violence | Iraq Updates

29 October 2006 (PortAl Iraq)

Coalition Forces and the Government of Iraq recently announced their efforts to establish "a common operational picture of reconstruction efforts in Baghdad" as part of the Baghdad Security Plan.
Led and planned by Iraqis, Operation Together Forward aims to improve security in Baghdad by focusing on "clear, hold, build" efforts - "clearing targeted neighborhoods of violence, holding the neighborhoods and building essential services projects that will have an immediate and sustained effect on Iraqis living in the neighborhoods."

The Joint Reconstruction Operations Center (JROC) was created to coordinate and synchronize Baghdad reconstruction efforts. The JROC consists of representatives from Multi-National Forces - Iraq, Multi-National Corps - Iraq, Multi-National Division - Baghdad, the U.S. Department of State, the Provincial Reconstruction Team - Baghdad, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Government of Iraq and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Gulf Region Division (USACE - GRD).

Each organization provides data to the JROC; the JROC then "presents a unified voice" to the Joint Planning Commission, which then decides on service projects for targeted areas.

"The common operational picture gives us outstanding situational awareness of reconstruction efforts in support of the 'build' phase of Operation Together Forward," Lt. Col. Reinhard Koenig, the GRD's liaison to the JROC, said. "Reconstruction is critical to ensuring the success of the Baghdad Security Plan."

Service projects have already been identified in Doura, Bayaa, Mansour, Kadamiyah and Adamiyah. As of Oct. 22, the GRD has identified 105 projects in the sectors of sewer, water and electricity at a construction cost of $35 million; 34 projects have been completed at a construction cost of $5 million.

"The more we strengthen the infrastructure, the more we weaken the insurgency and give the Iraqi citizens a reason for hope in the Government of Iraq," Koenig said.

As of Oct. 14, the Department of Defense has planned 3,566 projects at a construction cost of $7.22 billion in areas of security and law enforcement; public works and water; oil; buildings, health and education; transportation and communications; and electricity.

According to USACE:

648 are under construction at a construction cost of $2.58 billion.

2,597 have been completed at a construction cost of $3.49 billion.

3,245 projects have started at a construction cost of $6.07 billion.

Iraq reconstruction projects identified through Joint Reconstruction Operations Center | Iraq Updates

Hey Guys:

Indira & I took a week off and were out of town . . .

Thanks for the messages . . . We're in this with you all to the end . . . No matter what Boogirl says by pm & Showmethe$$ says in open court . . . as I've mentioned a time or 2 before I've been insulted by experts for over 50 years . . . water off a duck's back . . .

I see that *Brain* is no longer with us . . . In a way I'm a bit sorry . . . Although he was a bit annoying with his picking apart posts syllable by syllable . . . @ times I enjoyed his over-thinking . . .

Indira's been in a *snit* since we got back and she spoke with her Brothers, because they're still clams . . . on anything to do with the money . . .

For what it's worth . . . I do interpret this clam behavior as being a good sign . . .

I set her the task of trying to find out about the smaller notes & coins . . . if there's anything to learn on this subject . . . I'd like to know either way . . .

I'm glad to see Susie & many others of you *WOOTing away* . . . I have only been able to read back a few pages . . . but it looks like you *fact-finders* have been busy / and have hit a lot of pay-dirt . . . and the next few days sound interesting . . .

I will let you all know if she gets any info / when she tries again in about 8 hrs. . . .

Best to all, . . . RR . . .

Originally Posted by shotgunsusie

like we said yesterday when reviewing those pdf's, UNTIL the day they rescind that 1637 which holds RESTRICTIONS ON THE CURRENCY there will be nothing done to the dinar. all the rumors youve heard saying it was about to revalue for three years have been horsepucky. (too bad everyones 'sources' didnt read all the fine print.)

this tells me that jafari wasnt the only reason it didnt revalue, and maliki isnt the only reason it hasnt revalued yet. the ULTIMATE REASON was 1637 RESTRICTIONS. until thats gone we wont have a revalue. << can i get some emphasis on this period??

Does 1637 has anything to do with the signing of Article VIII? And is that happening Oct. 30-31?

Woot welcome back RR.