BAGHDAD, Sept 23 (KUNA) -- Iraq's Ministry of Oil on Saturday warned of the repercussions of the independence referendum slated for Monday in Iraqi Kurdistan, on the oil sector and the national companies operating in the field.
The ministry strongly warns all the relevant parties and agencies trying to exploit the "exceptional conditions" to control the "destinies and wealth of the Iraqi people --- or interfere in the affairs of the oil companies in the Iraqi governorates, including Kirkuk," a statement issued in Baghdad said.
It held all the "relevant bodies" responsible for preserving the safety of oil facilities and their staff.
The statement noted how the oil wealth is of crucial importance to the Iraqi economy, saying that the Iraqi Constitution provides that the "sovereign" hydrocarbon wealth is for all Iraqis.
Since 2003, the ministry and the Federal Government have been making the best investment of the national wealth, as well as meeting the needs of the entire Iraqi people, it stressed.
This has been the case despite the differences between Baghdad and the Iraqi Kurdistan on the oil policy and managing the country's wealth, the statement said.
It noted that Iraqi Kurdistan has failed to honor the relevant agreements regarding the federal budget. The government in Kurdistan exported oil and concluded contracts with foreign companies without referring to the Central Government, the ministry said.
Kurdistan has included the oil rich northern city of Kirkuk in the referendum due on Monday, though it refers, according to law, to the Federal Government.
The Kurds have controlled Kirkuk in 2014 after the Iraqi army withdrew from the city as the so-called Islamic State (IS) seized neighboring provinces. (end) ahh.msa