Syphoning Syria's Oil: EU Bankster funded Al-CIA-da Hits Bloody Pay Dirt

WARNING! REUTERS/BANKSTER VOODOO SPIN!

By Justyna Pawlak: The European Union's plan to ease an oil embargo to help Syrian rebels is a "pragmatic experiment" that could lead to further lifting of sanctions to tilt the balance of the conflict against President Bashar al-Assad, a senior EU official said on Friday.
Next week, EU governments will allow purchases of oil from the opposition, as part of a broader effort to help rebels waging a two-year uprising against Assad in which an estimated 70,000 people have died been slaughtered. The conflict is broadly in stalemate.

Hands off Iran and Syria

The rebels have complained to the United Nations bodies, the official said, that sanctions - imposed in response to Assad's brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protests - are hurting civilians and asked for wide-ranging economic help.
"This is a response to strong criticism that our sanctions are blindly hitting the regime but also the civilian population. This wasn't our intention," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
More sanctions relief would be in store if the easing of the oil embargo is successful, he said. "If it works, we may try to go further. This is a bit of a pragmatic experiment."

The rebels have gained control over some of Syria's oil-producing territory, including in the eastern provinces of Hasakah and Deir al-Zor, although these areas remain vulnerable to shelling and air strikes by government forces.
Oil sales could give the rebels much-needed cash for infrastructure repairs and to build up local governance, and, possibly, to fund purchases of arms.
But experts say immediate economic benefit to the rebels may be limited, largely because European companies may be reluctant to wade into the conflict and the rebels will struggle to prop up battered infrastructure to ship oil out.
The official sidestepped such concerns, and said that although the conflict in Syria was showing no sign of abating, there was "some kind of control when it came to exporting energy".
The official said the EU would also look into ways to address energy shortages in rebel-held areas. "That's perhaps what we should focus on," he said. "What people need is electricity."
International organizations, as well as the EU, keep close contacts with rebel representatives regarding such issues at a coordination center set up in a southern Turkish town of Gaziantep near the Syrian border, he said.
"If opposition-held areas can in due course start producing oil, or need to consume it, then it is reasonable that we would help them," a British diplomat said. "We need to be helping economic development in these areas. This is the kind of thing where we need to continue keeping sanctions under review."
Other EU diplomats said that in the coming weeks, EU governments would examine the possibility of easing trade sanctions to help rebel groups, focusing on trade credits and opening the possibility for banking with Europe.
So far, European governments have moved cautiously in helping the Syrian rebels, amid concerns of fragmentation and the presence of militant Islamists in their ranks.

(Additional reporting by Ethan Bilby; Editing by Jon Hemming)

Source

Edited by WD