US judge signs order to seize Kurdish oil from tanker off Texas

A US court has moved to seize a cargo of crude oil from Iraqi Kurdistan that Baghdad says was sold without its permission after the central Iraqi government filed suit to restrain export

Acting on a request from the central government in Iraq, a U.S. judge has signed an order telling the U.S. Marshals Service to seize a cargo of oil from Iraqi Kurdistan aboard a tanker off the Texascoast, court filings showed July 29.

The United Kalavrvta tanker, carrying some 1 million barrels of crude worth about $100 million, arrived near Galveston Bay on July 26 but has yet to unload its disputed cargo.

The ship, which is too large to enter ports near Houston and dock, was given clearance by the U.S. Coast Guardon July 27 to transfer its cargo offshore to smaller boats that would deliver it to the U.S. mainland.

But Iraq’s central government, in a court filing on July 28, laid claim to the cargo that it says was sold by the regional government of Kurdistan without permission from Baghdad, which has said such deals amount to smuggling.

To carry out the order from Magistrate Judge Nancy K. Johnson of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, the Marshals Service may need to rely on companies that provide crude offloading services.

The judge’s order said the vessel would be allowed free movement after the cargo is unloaded.
The U.S. State Department has expressed fears that independent oil sales from Kurdistan could contribute to the breakup of Iraq, has said the oil belongs to all Iraqis, and warned potential buyers of legal risks.

But it has also made clear it will not intervene in a commercial transaction.

The filings on July 28 did not name the...