Iraq, Türkiye near interim deal to keep oil exports flowing

Iraq and Türkiye are expected to sign an interim protocol to ensure the uninterrupted export of Iraqi crude while negotiating a new bilateral pipeline agreement, following high-level talks held in Ankara this week, Iraq's Foreign Ministry said.

An Iraqi delegation led by senior officials from the foreign and oil ministries visited the Turkish capital on July 1-2 to discuss the future of the Iraq–Türkiye pipeline agreement and opportunities to expand cooperation in oil exports and the broader energy sector.

The Iraqi delegation, comprising Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Mohammed Hussein Bahr Al-Uloom, Oil Ministry Undersecretary Nasir Al-Hindawi, and Ambassador Majid Al-Lajmawi, met Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar to explore ways to strengthen energy cooperation and ensure the uninterrupted export of Iraqi oil in the interests of both countries.

The sides agreed to continue technical, legal and coordination efforts. According to Iraq's Foreign Ministry, the next stage is expected to include the signing of an executive protocol guaranteeing the continued export of Iraqi crude, including oil produced in northern Iraq. The ministry said the protocol would serve as a transitional arrangement, paving the way for a new bilateral pipeline agreement within one year of the current accord's expiration.

The existing Türkiye–Iraq Crude Oil Pipeline Agreement, signed in 1973 and governing exports through the Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline, is due to expire on July 27 after more than five decades. Baghdad earlier requested a one-year extension to allow additional time for negotiations, but Ankara reportedly rejected the proposal, arguing the decades-old framework no longer reflects current commercial and legal realities.

Oil flows through the pipeline were suspended for about two and a half years after an international arbitration ruling ordered Türkiye to pay Baghdad $1.5 billion over unauthorized Kurdish oil exports between 2014 and 2018. Exports resumed late last year.

Türkiye is seeking a new agreement to maximize the use of the 970-kilometre Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline, which has a combined capacity of nearly 1.5 million barrels per day. Turkish officials have also proposed extending the network southward to Basra, Iraq's largest oil-producing region, as part of broader energy cooperation.

By Vafa Guliyeva