The Report of the Iraq Inquiry

I couldn’t be put in charge of oil because I really wasn’t American … [and] oil would

remain an American interest.

“So it was a very specific instruction from Bremer that I was not in charge of the Oil

Ministry.”

312. In his evidence to the Inquiry, Sir Jeremy Greenstock identified budgeting and oil

as the two clearest examples of issues on which the UK was not consulted by the CPA:

“We did not see anything whatsoever in the oil sector; they [the CPA] kept that very

closely American, because they wanted to run the oil sector.”167

313. The Inquiry asked Sir Jeremy why the CPA sought to retain control of the oil sector.

He responded:

“I think they [the CPA] felt that they understood the oil sector. They brought in

American oil executives to advise them on this and to run that part of the CPA.

They knew that management of the oil sector was going to be vital for the supply

of finance into the Iraqi system and they wanted to be responsible for it themselves.

“There might have been a minor angle of thinking that they wanted access to

the contracts that might come out of the oil sector and the Iraqi economy at a

subsequent period, but the Americans were doing 95 percent of the work and putting

in more than 95 percent of the money. I wouldn’t like to say that they were not

justified in taking that approach.”168

314. Sir Jeremy continued:

“… the Americans had no intention to take over and own the oil sector. That was

always a canard in public criticism terms of what the invasion was about. It was not

about oil. I think they just felt it was such an important area that they would run it

themselves.”

315. Section 9.2 describes the Government’s broader concerns about the CPA’s failure

to consult with the UK, as a joint Occupying Power.

316. The Annotated Agenda for the 12 June meeting of the AHMGIR stated that the UK

Government had put forward two UK candidates to sit on the OAB.169 It was likely that

a UK candidate would be chosen in the next few weeks.

317. The Annotated Agenda for the 3 July meeting of the AHMGIR stated that the OAB

would not be constituted, having been replaced by a CPA oil sector team.170 The DTI

167 Public hearing, 15 December 2009, page 102.

168 Public hearing, 15 December 2009, pages 103-4.

169 Annotated Agenda, 12 June 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation meeting.

170 Annotated Agenda, 3 July 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation meeting.

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