Iraq Needs Its No-Bid Oil Contracts Deals aren't exploitative, argues energy adviser By Kevin Spak Posted Jul 26, 2008 3:15 PM CDT Copied Employees work at an installation at the Zubair Moshrif oil field, 600 kilometers (372 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, July 3, 2008. (AP Photo) US lawmakers have been raging against no-bid deals struck by foreign oil companies in Iraq—but impeding them would be pure folly, energy consultant Raad Alkadiri argues in the Washington Post. Most of these companies have already advised Iraq on its oil fields for free; Baghdad only sought to formalize the business with contracts, which aren't cupcake deals, either. Iraq is fighting hard for its national interests, and US intervention would not be looked on kindly. "Obstructing the deals simultaneously conveys to Iraqis the image of direct U.S. interference in their sovereign affairs and the impression that America is somehow seeking to impede their country's recovery," Alkadiri writes. Read These Next A government shutdown could mean permanent layoffs. It's one of the best lottery pool stories you'll ever read. Judge demands answers from Trump administration on Mangione comments. Trash bags, zip ties, bleach caught delivery driver's attention. Report an error