This is huge news. I wonder if Bush will be asked about this at tonight's press conference?
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iraq's choice of Ahmad Chalabi as acting oil minister has raised concerns that he is not the best person for the job because he has little energy experience and was once convicted of bank fraud, U.S. energy experts said on Thursday.
Oil is Iraq's chief source of revenue as the nation struggles to rebuild. Iraq now produces about 1.9 million barrels of crude oil a day and will try to boost output as it slowly repairs and replaces obsolete technology.
"You are to some extent, from the perceptions of many Iraqis, putting a fox in charge of the henhouse," said Anthony Cordesman, referring to Chalabi. Cordesman is a Middle East expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies based in Washington.
Chalabi is taking over the ministry at a critical time. It must make decisions on which companies get preference for oil sales, which contracts are honored and which will be renegotiated. The ministry also faces frequent sabotage against its oil pipelines.
"(Chalabi) is going to make it extremely easy for people to make charges about corruption and raise questions on how the oil money is distributed," said Cordesman.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=8338390My blog www.thefriendlytipster.blogspot.com
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