Reporting: A covert plan to transfer gas from Iraq to Europe, through Turkey and with Israeli involvement, is one of the main reasons that led to the massive attack by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq on March 13. According to a report in the Reuters news agency, Israeli and American officials met in Kurdish in the Kurdish region with Kurdish and Turkish officials – in order to transfer gas to Europe, against the background of the energy crisis following the war in Ukraine and the European attempt to disengage from Russian gas.
Iraqi and Turkish sources said they believed the Iranian attack was aimed at some of Russia’s allies in the region, due to the plan to move Kurdish gas through Turkey with Israeli involvement. “There have been two meetings between senior energy officials in Israel and the United States to discuss the transportation of Kurdish gas through a new pipeline,” it said.
According to the report, the same meetings took place at a villa in the capital of the Kurdish region that was the main target of the bombing. A senior Iraqi security official confirmed that Kurdish businessman Buzz Karim Barzani, the owner of the same villa and an active player in the energy field, had worked with all parties to advance the move.
A senior Iranian security official told Reuters that the attack, during which 12 ballistic missiles were fired from northern Iraq and claimed to be aimed at “secret Israeli facilities,” was intended to send a “multi-purpose message” to many people and groups. “It’s their decision how to interpret it. Everything they plan, from energy to agriculture – will not come true,” he said.
Just yesterday, Msrur Barzani, the prime minister of the Kurdish region in Iraq, spoke out, saying that Kurdistan could supply at least some of its European gas consumption. He said Kurdistan would soon become an important regional energy source for Turkey and other countries. This morning he referred to the attack on Arbil and said that the Kurdish region is becoming a dominant player in the gas and oil fields – and Iran should not interfere in this.
BREAKING: Explosions heard in Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan Region of Iraqpic.twitter.com/lZLDFnAWuC
— BNO News (@BNONews) March 12, 2022
Sources in Turkey and Iraq estimate that Iran seeks to reduce the influence of foreign factors on the energy economy in the region, beyond its desire to reduce Israel’s influence. This comes against the background of estimates that the nuclear agreement is expected to be signed in the coming days and will lead to the removal of many sanctions from the Iranian energy interface.
Israel and Turkey promote: Gas from the Whale Reservoir to Europe
Against the background of the war in Ukraine and the sanctions on Russia, another proposal has arisen in recent days to transfer gas to Europe – but in this case it is Israeli gas. The idea, which has been mentioned over the past few years, has resurfaced recently and has been debated against the background of President Yitzhak Herzog’s visit to Turkey and his meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The plan is to build a new underwater gas pipeline from the Leviathan gas reservoir – which will reach Turkey and from there to southern European countries. It is clear that the plan is currently in its initial stages, and experts estimate that it will take a long time to reach an agreement that will be acceptable to all parties involved, including Greece and Cyprus, Israel’s regional partners in the field of energy.
Turkish President Erdogan said last week that gas cooperation is “one of the most important steps in bilateral relations with Israel.” He told reporters that he was ready to send senior government officials to Israel in order to advance the gas pipeline laying project. Already during Herzog’s visit to Turkey about 3 weeks ago, Erdogan expressed his desire to promote projects in the field of energy.
The Leviathan gas reservoir already supplies gas to Israel, Jordan and Egypt. The companies that operate it recently announced that they intend to increase its output from 12 million cubic meters to 21 million per year. By company NewMed, One of the reservoir operators, the gas balances will be shipped to Europe and the Far East. Last month the company said that Turkey could certainly become one of the export destinations, but that requires it to take an active part and help lay the pipeline.