dijlahpoint - Economic expert Ziad al-Hashemi warned on Wednesday against circulating parliamentary statements claiming that the Iraqi government pays amounts to Iran in exchange for Iraqi oil passing through the Strait of Hormuz, considering that such statements may mislead public opinion and entangle the government in inaccurate positions.

In a post on his Facebook account, al-Hashemi said there is no payment mechanism linking the Iraqi government with Iran to settle amounts in any currency, noting that the dollar does not even reach the Iraqi government's hands, but remains in Federal Reserve accounts, from where it is transferred to non-sanctioned or non-restricted foreign parties after US scrutiny.

He added that Iraqi oil is already sold at price discounts for loading from Basra terminals, considering this evidence that this method is adopted by the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) to encourage ships to enter the strait and reach Basra to load oil.