Newly Appointed SRSG Takes Office
The newly appointed Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Iraq (SRSG), Mr. Nickolay Mladenov, arrived today in Baghdad and immediately assumed his responsibilities as the Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the United Nations top envoy in the country. Mr. Mladenov of Bulgaria was appointed by the Secretary-General […]
Shahristani Updates on Oil Targets
By John Lee. Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister for Energy, Hussain al-Shahristani (pictured), has said the company is on track to pump 3.7 million barrels a day of crude by the end of the year. He told a conference in Dubai: "Iraq will easily pass 3.5 million barrels a day before the end of the year […]
Iraq Buys New Military Robots
By John Lee. QinetiQ North America (QNA) has announced it is being awarded a $20 million, firm-fixed-price contract for its TALON IV military robots (pictured), spares and training. The contract will support foreign military sales to Iraq. The TALON IV robot provides the Iraqi military's explosive ordnance disposal technicians with a man-transportable capability to remotely […]
Iran, Iraq Enhance Defense Cooperation
By John Lee. Iran's PressTV reports that Iran and Iraq have signed a memorandum of understanding to boost defense cooperation. The MoU was signed on Thursday by Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan and his Iraqi counterpart, Saadoun al-Dulaimi (pictured), who was visiting Tehran. The ministers described the agreement as an important factor in […]
Kurdistan Election Results Delayed
By John Lee. Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) has said that the results of the parliamentary election of the Kurdistan Region will not be announced until next week. It had originally planned to give the results of Saturday's election on Thursday 26th. 73.9 percent of the 2.8 million people eligible in the ballot turned […]
Amnesty International Urges Halt to Executions
All executions in Iraq must be halted immediately, Amnesty International urged after 13 men were executed in Baghdad. The organization has been able to confirm the names of nine of the men, who were executed on 22 September following death sentences imposed after unfair trials and based on “confessions” allegedly extracted under torture. Four others […]
UK/Kurdistan Relations: A Deepening Commitment
By Hugh Evans, United Kingdom's Consul General in Erbil. The UK is proud of the close friendship it has forged with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in recent decades. Today, our bilateral relationship encompasses strong political, commercial, educational, cultural and governance ties. As the people of Kurdistan go to the polls this weekend to elect […]
Weekly Security Update 19 - 26 September 2013
By Tom Walker, Director, Assaye Risk COUNTRY OVERVIEW Iraq has remained febrile this week with multiple high impact attacks killing hundreds, predominantly in the northern and central belts. As September draws to a close it is clear that the Syrian conflict is penetrating deeper into the fabric of Iraq as groups up and down […]
Iraq asks Kurds to Link Pipeline to its Network
By John Lee. Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussain al-Shahristani (pictured) has asked the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to connect its new oil pipeline with Baghdad's Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in a way that allows Baghdad to measure oil flows, according to Reuters. The KRG is expected to complete the 300,000-bpd pipeline in the coming weeks, […]
Iraqi-Kuwaiti Talks in New York
By John Lee. Vice-President of the Republic Dr. Khudair Alkhozai and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Hoshyar Zebari met His Highness Prime Minister of the State of Kuwait the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah on the sidelines of the sixty-eighth session of the General Assembly […]
Serco Continues Services to Baghdad Airport
By John Lee. Serco, the international service company, in cooperation with its Iraqi partner Al Burhan Group, has signed a new agreement with the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) to continue providing Air Traffic Control (ATC) services, training and support at Baghdad International Airport and extending our presence in Iraq. Serco has been providing these […]
Ericsson Partners with Tishknet
Ericsson has partnered with Iraq’s leading internet and communications provider, Tishknet, to deploy the first LTE TDD network in the country. The agreement includes the latest LTE technology with the Ericsson RBS 6000 family of base stations. Also included is Ericsson’s Evolved Packet Core network, with Evolved Packet Gateway on the SSR 8000 family of […]