The Position of Oil in the Context of Bilateral Relations between Iran and Iraq during the Resumption of Post-JCPOA Sanctions

Revival of Iran sanctions after nuclear agreement with great powers (JCPA) have made essential Iran s economic relations with neighbor s and other countries. The main goal of the article is evaluation of Iran- Iraq relations with focus on oil factor, because of Iran s oil sanctions revival and importance of the energy in economic policy of both Iran and Iraq. Despite of Saddam regime collapse and promotion of Shias groups in Iraq power structure and hence Iran s increased penetration in the country, oil factor has not necessarily resulted in cooperation and in some circumstances, it can play disintegrative role specially in sanctions revival era. With descriptive-explanative method, the article seeks to answer the question that how can we evaluate oil position in Iran-Iraq relations during the resumption of post-JCPOA sanctions? As a hypothesis, the article argues in spite of oil important role in bilateral relations of the two countries, this factor have had impressed securities preferences and mostly play secondary role. Findings of the article shows in spite of oil role in creating cooperative context such as common oil fields, Iran technological-engineering educational trains to Iraqis and Iran aids to Iraq to facilitate oil export (with use of pipeline and Hormoz Strait islands) and some competitive factors such as exploitation of common oil fields, global attention to Iraq oil in post-Saddam era and decreased power of Iran oil diplomacy eventually this factor cannot replace two sides parallel securities interests.