Secret memos expose link between oil firms and invasion of Iraq

[Modbert]

Secret memos expose link between oil firms and invasion of Iraq - UK Politics, UK - The Independent

Plans to exploit Iraq's oil reserves were discussed by government ministers and the world's largest oil companies the year before Britain took a leading role in invading Iraq, government documents show.

The papers, revealed here for the first time, raise new questions over Britain's involvement in the war, which had divided Tony Blair's cabinet and was voted through only after his claims that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

The minutes of a series of meetings between ministers and senior oil executives are at odds with the public denials of self-interest from oil companies and Western governments at the time.

The documents were not offered as evidence in the ongoing Chilcot Inquiry into the UK's involvement in the Iraq war. In March 2003, just before Britain went to war, Shell denounced reports that it had held talks with Downing Street about Iraqi oil as "highly inaccurate". BP denied that it had any "strategic interest" in Iraq, while Tony Blair described "the oil conspiracy theory" as "the most absurd".

But documents from October and November the previous year paint a very different picture.

Over 1,000 documents were obtained under Freedom of Information over five years by the oil campaigner Greg Muttitt. They reveal that at least five meetings were held between civil servants, ministers and BP and Shell in late 2002.

Be sure to read on after the jump.

 

[Political Junky]

Secret memos expose link between oil firms and invasion of Iraq - UK Politics, UK - The Independent

Plans to exploit Iraq's oil reserves were discussed by government ministers and the world's largest oil companies the year before Britain took a leading role in invading Iraq, government documents show.

The papers, revealed here for the first time, raise new questions over Britain's involvement in the war, which had divided Tony Blair's cabinet and was voted through only after his claims that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

The minutes of a series of meetings between ministers and senior oil executives are at odds with the public denials of self-interest from oil companies and Western governments at the time.

The documents were not offered as evidence in the ongoing Chilcot Inquiry into the UK's involvement in the Iraq war. In March 2003, just before Britain went to war, Shell denounced reports that it had held talks with Downing Street about Iraqi oil as "highly inaccurate". BP denied that it had any "strategic interest" in Iraq, while Tony Blair described "the oil conspiracy theory" as "the most absurd".

But documents from October and November the previous year paint a very different picture.

Over 1,000 documents were obtained under Freedom of Information over five years by the oil campaigner Greg Muttitt. They reveal that at least five meetings were held between civil servants, ministers and BP and Shell in late 2002.

Be sure to read on after the jump.

Huge surprise...oil was involved.

 

[idb]

Tony Blair is a smarmy lying piece of shit

 

[Dr.Drock]

Is there anyone left who denies oil was at minimum part of the reason why we went to war?



Hopefully soon enough people learn how important it is in our wars in Afghanistan and Libya, but Iraq is a good start.

 

[VaYank5150]

Is there anyone left who denies oil was at minimum part of the reason why we went to war?



Hopefully soon enough people learn how important it is in our wars in Afghanistan and Libya, but Iraq is a good start.

So....you mean.....it really.....wasn't all about WMD??????

 

[Stephanie]

Yeah, all that OIL we are getting from Iraq, sure seems it WAS FOR OIL.

of course it couldn't be for Humanitarian reason or to dispose a evil Dictator like the Obama's war on Libya.

 

[blu]

of course the war was over oil... only meth addicted rednecks believed we actually cared about the plight of the iraqs and wanted to 'free' them

 

[Dr.Drock]

Yeah, all that OIL we are getting from Iraq, sure seems it WAS FOR OIL.

of course it couldn't be for Humanitarian reason or to dispose a evil Dictator like the Obama's war on Libya.

Neither wars are for humanitarian reasons, you really have to be living in another world to have faith in the morals of american bureacrats.



Just seems the "poor people" in oil-rich areas have a lot better chance of being "saved" by our military than poor people living on land without texas tea underneath them.

 

[Dr.Drock]

Is there anyone left who denies oil was at minimum part of the reason why we went to war?



Hopefully soon enough people learn how important it is in our wars in Afghanistan and Libya, but Iraq is a good start.

So....you mean.....it really.....wasn't all about WMD??????

Our intelligence saw a town full of homes in Iraq using propane tanks to heat them and just mistakenly took them for nukes.


Honest mistake.....................................

 

[uscitizen]

Secret memos expose link between oil firms and invasion of Iraq - UK Politics, UK - The Independent

Plans to exploit Iraq's oil reserves were discussed by government ministers and the world's largest oil companies the year before Britain took a leading role in invading Iraq, government documents show.

The papers, revealed here for the first time, raise new questions over Britain's involvement in the war, which had divided Tony Blair's cabinet and was voted through only after his claims that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

Over 1,000 documents were obtained under Freedom of Information over five years by the oil campaigner Greg Muttitt. They reveal that at least five meetings were held between civil servants, ministers and BP and Shell in late 2002.

Be sure to read on after the jump.

Huge surprise...oil was involved.

Bush is not longer president so of course it iwas about oil all the time

 

[VaYank5150]

Is there anyone left who denies oil was at minimum part of the reason why we went to war?



Hopefully soon enough people learn how important it is in our wars in Afghanistan and Libya, but Iraq is a good start.

So....you mean.....it really.....wasn't all about WMD??????

Our intelligence saw a town full of homes in Iraq using propane tanks to heat them and just mistakenly took them for nukes.


Honest mistake.....................................

I am sure the families of the thousands of lost servicemen and women will feel all warm and fuzzy about this....

 

[Dr.Drock]

So....you mean.....it really.....wasn't all about WMD??????

Our intelligence saw a town full of homes in Iraq using propane tanks to heat them and just mistakenly took them for nukes.


Honest mistake.....................................

I am sure the families of the thousands of lost servicemen and women will feel all warm and fuzzy about this....

Well they were already told a bunch of lies, so I'm betting they're prolly numb to it by now.

With the fiasco that was Iraq I don't know how much longer Americans will believe a single word that comes out of our bureacrats mouths about any issue. I already don't.

 

[blu]

and this is why the oil comapnies should have been forced to pay for the war in iraq and should have to pay the families for all the kids that died or were maimed for their profits.

these companies are fucking sick. all the executives and politicians that were involved in this process should be killed in front of their children

 

[Dr.Drock]

and this is why the oil comapnies should have been forced to pay for the war in iraq and should have to pay the families for all the kids that died or were maimed for their profits.

these companies are fucking sick. all the executives and politicians that were involved in this process should be killed in front of their children

I think I like the idea in your first sentence more, send all their profits to the families of those who died and take all the trust funds of our bureacrats and make them into checks for americans to pay them back the taxes we put into this.