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U.S. Mulls Revival of Mosul-Haifa Pipeline
The U.S. Defense Department sent a telegram to the Israeli Foreign Ministry last week on the possibility of pumping oil from U.S.-occupied Iraq to Israel, reported a leading Israeli newspaper Monday, August 25. A "senior Pentagon official" has sent a telegram to a "top Foreign Ministry official" on the cost estimate for repairing the Mosul-Haifa pipeline that was in use prior to 1948, reported Haaretz. It quoted sources as confirming that "the Americans are looking into the possibility of laying a new pipeline via Jordan and Israel." The new pipeline would take oil from the oil-rich Iraqi northern area of Kirkuk, where some 40 percent of Iraqi oil is produced, transport it via Mosul to Jordan and then to Israel, said the daily. Thus enriching our Zionist masters in their bid to dominate to world, blah, blah, blah. After the end of the British mandate, the 1948 war and the creation of Israel, Iraq stopped the flow of oil to Haifa and the pipeline, only 8 inches in diameter, fell into disrepair since then. A recent research by the Israeli National Infrastructure Ministry put the construction of a 42-inch diameter pipeline between Kirkuk and Haifa at some 400,000 dollars per kilometer. Be a bitch to defend, but worth it. On Sunday, August 24, Israeli National Infrastructure Minister Yosef Paritzky vowed to discuss the issue with the U.S. secretary of energy during his envisaged visit to Washington next month. He asserted that the whole project depends on Jordanâs consent, adding that the kingdom would receive a transit fee for allowing the oil to flow through its territory. Thanks for your help. Paritzky believes restarting the pipeline could reduce Israelâs fuel costs by 25 percent and turn Haifa into "the Rotterdam of the Middle East." Israeli Premier Ariel Sharonâs government "views the pipeline to Haifa as a âbonusâ the U.S. could give to Israel in return for its unequivocal support for the American-led campaign in Iraq," according to Haaretz. Works for me, thereâs also a bonus. Keep reading, Murat. At present, Iraqi oil is being shipped via Turkey to a small Mediterranean port near the Syrian border. Ankara, which considers the transit fee it collects an important source of revenue, has warned Israel it would regard the talked-about Kirkuk-Mosul-Haifa pipeline as "a serious blow to Turkish-Israeli relations." Haaretz quoted sources as saying reports about the alternative pipeline are part of an American "attempt to apply pressure on Turkey" which had opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and is still reluctant to commit troops to the neighboring country to ease the burden on American forces. Paybackâs a bitch, ainât it? Posted by: Steve 2003-08-25 |
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