Baghdad/Washington, May 8 (UNI) Iraq has rejected US allegations against its Deputy Oil Minister Ali Maarij al-Bahadli, who Washington hit with sanctions following allegations he was helping Iran evade sanctions on its oil exports.
Announced late Thursday, the sanctions are the latest tool used by the US State Department as part of its broader pressure tactics to force Baghdad on curbing its supposed ties with Iran-linked networks and militias.
According to the State Department, Bahadli "abused his government position to divert Iraqi oil in support of the Iranian regime and its terrorist proxies."
US officials accused him of helping facilitate the fraudulent blending of Iraqi and Iranian crude oil in order to disguise the origin of sanctioned Iranian shipments and move them onto international markets.
Pushing back against the US allegations, the Iraqi oil ministry releasing a statement said that it "denies the accusations" against Bahadli, and stressed "the importance of transparency in addressing all ... accusations on the basis of evidence and facts," according to the INA state news agency.
It added that Iraqi authorities were prepared to investigate the matter, but argued that the deputy minister's official responsibilities do not include "crude oil export operations, marketing, loading onto tankers, and related procedures."
The dispute comes amid growing tensions between Washington and Tehran following the outbreak of war earlier this year.
The United States has intensified efforts to crack down on networks suspected of helping Iran bypass sanctions, particularly through oil exports and maritime trade.
Last year, Washington imposed sanctions on companies linked to an Iraqi businessman over similar allegations involving the mixing of Iraqi and Iranian crude.
Post sanctioning an Iraqi businessman for similar charges, Iraq's state oil marketing company State Organisation for Marketing of Oil, commonly known as SOMO, denied that any such blending operations were taking place in Iraqi ports or territorial waters.
The US maintains unilateral sanctions on Iranian oil exports and has repeatedly warned countries, traders and shipping companies against purchasing or transporting Iranian crude.
UNI ANV SSP