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DUBAI/BAGHDAD: Iraq’s attempt to ease its chronic power shortage with gas from Turkmenistan routed through neighboring Iran has failed under US pressure, leaving Baghdad scrambling for alternatives to keep the lights on.
Oil-rich Iraq has struggled to provide its citizens with power since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, forcing many to rely on expensive private generators, causing economic hardship and sparking social unrest.
Hussain Saad, a 43-year-old owner of a butcher shop in the Kasra neighborhood of Baghdad, is struggling to protect his livelihood and keep his meat from spoiling in the scorching heat.
“This isn’t just my suffering — it’s the suffering of the entire Iraqi people,” he said.
A deal first proposed in 2023 would have seen Turkmenistan export gas to Iraq through Iran, which lies between the two countries. Under the swap deal, Iran would receive the gas and supply it to Iraq, but this risked violating US sanctions on Tehran — requiring Washington’s approval.
That approval never came. US President Trump’s administration has doubled down on a “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran.
CAUGHT BETWEEN TWO ALLIES
Reuters spoke to four Iraqi officials and reviewed seven official documents to reveal how Baghdad had sought Washington’s approval for months to let it import roughly 5 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Turkmen gas via Iran.
Iraq sought to import 5.025 bcm of Turkmen gas a year, facilitated via Iran’s state-owned National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC), according to a draft contract of the swap deal seen by Reuters.
Iran would receive no money, but would get gas for its own needs amounting to no more than 23 percent of the overall daily volume coming from Turkmenistan, a document showed.
Baghdad also offered to allow a third-party international monitor to oversee the deal’s compliance with US sanctions and anti-money laundering rules, the same document showed.
But despite months of lobbying, US objections ultimately scuppered the deal as Washington ramps up pressure on Iran over its nuclear plans.
That has left Baghdad facing an increasingly difficult balancing act between its main allies in Washington and Tehran.
“Proceeding (with the Turkmen deal) could trigger sanctions on Iraqi banks and financial institutions, so the contract is currently suspended,” Adel Karim, adviser to Iraq’s prime minister for electricity affairs, told Reuters.
The US Treasury declined to comment but a US source familiar with the matter said the Trump administration would not approve arrangements that could benefit Iran, though it was working with Iraq on its energy needs.
The Iranian government, oil ministry, NIGC and Turkmen foreign ministry did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.
IRAQ’S RELIANCE ON IRANIAN GAS
Iraq has relied on gas and power imports from Iran for the past decade. Iranian gas covers nearly a third of Iraq’s power generation and in 2024 gas imports reached 9.5 bcm, said an Iraqi power official, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
“If we lose Iranian gas, we’ll face a serious problem in electricity generation,” Karim said.
Although Iraq is OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, it burns off much of the gas it produces alongside oil due to under-investment and lack of infrastructure to capture and process it.
The country extracted just 11 bcm of gas in 2023 that could be used for power or industrial needs, according to the IEA. Iraq’s gas needs vary seasonally, with demand surging in summer to around 45 million cubic meters (mcm) per day, Karim said, otherwise dropping to 10–20 mcm per day.
SANCTIONS SCUPPER TURKMEN DEAL
In March, the Trump administration ended a sanctions waiver that since 2018 had allowed Iraq to pay for Iranian power, curtailing imports.
The lack of gas supplies from Iran led to a loss of about 3,000 megawatts of power generation since the waivers ended and peak summer demand set in — more than 10 percent of Iraq’s roughly 28,000 megawatts of total capacity, Karim said, enough to impact around 2.5 million homes according to Iraqi electricity officials.
Baghdad hoped to diversify its supply and avoid the risk of breaching sanctions with the Turkmen deal, sources said and documents showed.
Failing to secure that deal could jeopardize Baghdad’s ability to sustain gas plants during peak summer demand, Iraq’s electricity ministry warned in a letter to state-owned Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) on May 27, three months prior to a nationwide blackout in August.
DIVERSIFICATION THROUGH LNG, QATAR
With the Turkmen route blocked, Iraq is exploring alternatives to plug its power needs gap, including building infrastructure to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar.
Hamza Abdul Baqi, head of the state-owned South Gas Company, told Reuters in March that Iraq would lease a floating LNG terminal to handle Qatari and Omani gas. The government had tasked the oil ministry with finding alternatives to Iranian gas in case the US decided to restrict it, he said.
The country has also signed deals with global oil majors such as TotalEnergies, BP and Chevron over the past two years to speed up its gas projects.
French oil major TotalEnergies said this week it has launched the second development phase at Iraq’s Ratawi field, the final stages of a $27 billion project that aims to boost Iraq’s oil, gas and power production.
Britain’s BP said in March it has received final government approval for the redevelopment of Iraq’s giant Kirkuk oilfields, with an initial plan to produce 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
“We’re expanding our gas-fired power plants,” Karim said. “We’ll need more gas and more sources.”

NEW YORK: The Syrian Arab Republic’s new Permanent Representative to the UN Ibrahim Olabi pledged to “turn hope into action” in a landmark address to the Security Council on Thursday, signaling what he described as a historic shift in the country’s approach to diplomacy, accountability, and national reconciliation.

Delivering his first remarks since assuming the post on Sept. 11, the 34-year-old British-German lawyer and human rights advocate, acknowledged international calls for justice and reform.

He vowed that Syria would “add to hope, action,” and work to restore unity and stability in a country ravaged by over a decade of war amidst the fall of the previous regime.

“Less than a year ago, a young Syrian woman sat at this very table speaking out against tyranny. Today, I stand before you as a representative of a new Syria — a Syria committed to freedom, dignity, and justice,” Olabi said.

Much of Olabi’s statement focused on recent unrest in Suwayda, a southern governorate that has seen mass protests and violent crackdowns in recent months.

He told council members that the Syrian government had adopted a comprehensive roadmap for resolving the crisis, developed during a tripartite meeting in Damascus with the US and Jordan.

The plan includes an official request for an investigation by the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria and a commitment to hold accountable all perpetrators of violence, regardless of affiliation.

Olabi noted that suspects from the Ministry of Defense and Interior had already been arrested and that the government had taken “unprecedented steps” to cooperate with international investigators.

“The families of the victims should feel that justice was truly served,” he said, promising that the process would be inclusive and transparent.

The roadmap, according to Olabi, also envisions the creation of a local police force representative of Suwayda’s diverse population, reconstruction of destroyed areas, delivery of humanitarian assistance, and a campaign to promote national unity and counter extremism.

Olabi outlined what he called a “new political reality” in Syria, following the “liberation of the country from oppression” and the preservation of state institutions. He announced that Syria would soon hold the first elections “in decades” based on a genuine separation of powers.

“These elections will be a genuine opportunity for all Syrian men and women to participate in drafting the future of the country,” he said, promising a minimum of 20 percent representation for women on candidate lists and allowing international observers to monitor the vote.

Olabi said the electoral process would be carried out under judicial and media supervision, with oversight agreements already signed between the High Electoral Commission and civil society organizations.

In addition to political reforms, Olabi emphasized Syria’s efforts to revive its economy through agreements with foreign governments and international companies. He pointed to global partnerships and community-led initiatives from the Syrian diaspora aimed at supporting the country’s recovery.

However, he lamented what he called the international community’s “insufficient” support at both the humanitarian and developmental levels.

He urged member states to fulfill their pledges to the UN’s humanitarian response plan and warned that Syria is facing its worst drought in three decades, threatening food and water security.

“We need a quantum leap in international engagement to meet the scale of our challenges,” he said.

Olabi also condemned recent Israeli airstrikes in Syria and called on the UN Security Council to take urgent action. He accused Israel of expanding its operations in Syrian territory, particularly in the occupied Golan Heights, and cited relevant UN resolutions demanding Israeli withdrawal.

Olabi concluded his remarks with a sweeping vision for Syria’s future, one centered on inclusivity, sovereignty, and civil peace.

“Damascus, the heart of Syria, will continue to bring together all Syrian men and women,” he said. “They stand today united, looking towards the future, rejecting terrorism, hate speech, and extremism — turning the page on suffering and pain.”