Syria rejects claims of crude oil shipments from Iraq
Shafaq News- Damascus
Syria’s state oil company denied reports on Saturday that 70 tanker trucks carrying crude oil for export had entered the country from Iraq.
Safwan Sheikh Ahmad, director of government communication at the Syrian
Petroleum Company, said in a statement that the tankers waiting on the Iraqi
side to cross through Al-Yarubiyah border crossing are loaded with fuel oil,
not crude, and originate from nearby Iraqi refineries. He explained that
rerouting the shipments via Al-Yarubiyah and along the M4 highway toward
Baniyas, instead of the Al-Tanf crossing, is driven by logistical
considerations to shorten distance and time. Ahmad added that there has been no
change in the nature of contracts or agreed materials.
The crossing underwent rehabilitation and maintenance work
by Syrian and Iraqi authorities before its official reopening on April 20.
Earlier, the first Iraqi oil convoys entered through the Al-Tanf–Al-Waleed
crossing on April 1, heading to the Baniyas refinery.
