(Washington, DC) – The Kurdistan Region in Iraq is currently faced with several challenges that put at risk its stability and energy sector, but the risks go beyond the borders of Kurdistan and Iraq, and are a national security imperative for the United States and Europe.
The recent Iraqi Federal Court ruling against the Kurdistan Region’s Oil and Gas Law and the Iraqi Ministry of Oil’s rash pursuit of international oil companies, including American IOCs, could potentially put over 450,000 bpd of oil at risk of disappearing from the market. This at a time when most countries around the world are facing a deepening energy crisis. At the same time, the Kurdistan Region has been hit by drones and shelling from rogue Iraqi militia groups, Turkish shelling and Iranian ballistic missiles.
The Kurdistan Region is the stable corner of Iraq that has been a safe haven for religious minorities and Syrian refugees. It is the only place in Iraq that the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has invested in. It is critical to the United States’ mission against ISIS in Syria as well as Iraq.
An unstable and economically crippled Kurdistan Region would not only harm the Kurdistan Region, the rest of Iraq but also the international energy supply and security outlook.
Join the Gold Institute for International Strategy and Kurdistan24 Research and Survey Center for a discussion on these concerns and the path forward.
What: Energy and stability in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq: A national security imperative for the United States
Who: Eli M. Gold, President, Gold Institute for International Strategy
Victoria Coates, Distinguished Fellow in Strategic Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council
Entifadh Qantdar, President, Future Foundation
Nahro Zagros, Senior Fellow, Gold Institute for International Strategy and President of Kurdistan24 Research and Survey Center.
Where: National Press Club
When: Thursday, July 28, 2022
Time: 5:30pm
Registration: CLICK HERE
Gold Institute for International Strategy Engaging with current decision-makers and their senior advisors and listening to our citizens, the Gold Institute for International Strategy offers fresh insights and practical solutions to both familiar and imminent problems on the world stage.
Conscious of the challenge from authoritarian regimes abroad, popular disenchantment at home, and the emergence of new ideological, biological and technological threats; convinced of the fundamental validity and vitality of our complex and hard-won democracies and of their need to work closely together; the Gold Institute for International Strategy aims to promote the freedom, prosperity and security of our nations, applying western values, strategic vision, and the lessons of the past to the challenges of the future, through a tested international team of experienced political and military practitioners.
