Iraq recently reclaimed the number two position in the OPEC, overtaking oil-sanctioned Iran [EPA]
Greg Muttitt
Al Jazeera
In
2011, after nearly nine years of war and occupation, US troops finally
left Iraq. In their place, Big Oil is now present in force and the
country’s oil output, crippled for decades, is growing again. Iraq recently reclaimed
the number two position in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC), overtaking oil-sanctioned Iran. Now, there's talk of a
new world petroleum glut. So is this finally mission accomplished?
Well,
not exactly. In fact, any oil company victory in Iraq is likely to
prove as temporary as George W Bush's triumph in 2003. The main reason
is yet another of those stories the mainstream media didn’t quite find
room for: the role of Iraqi civil society. But before telling that
story, let’s look at what's happening to Iraqi oil today, and how we got
from the "no blood for oil" global protests of 2003 to the present
moment.
