Kuwaiti Oil Minister Saud Nasser Al-Sabah last week disclosed that Iraq blocked Saudi Arabia's candidate, Suleiman Jasir Al-Herbish, from being elected secretary general of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
He said the other 10 OPEC nations supported Al-Herbish to succeed Rilwanu Lukman during the group's meeting last weekend in Vienna.
OPEC subsequently named Alí Rodríguez Araque, Venezuela's minister of energy and mines and the current OPEC president, as the new secretary general (see related story, this page).
Al-Sabah's comments
Al-Sabah questioned whether Iraq should be permitted to exercise the rights of full membership in OPEC after vetoing the group's first choice of secretary general and after being in arrears on its membership dues for many years.
The minister, in London to speak at the 19th annual Oil & Money conference, said the selection of Rodríguez was "a very good decision."
He said, "Unfortunately, Iraq had vetoed the Saudi nominee. And the only way to get out of this impasse was-and I think it was a wise decision-to ask Alí Rodríguez to become secretary general."
"This is not a new [problem]," Al-Sabah added, "we have long had historically difficulties in electing a secretary general because of political problems."
He described Al-Herbish as a "very capable man."
Iraq's membership, Al-Sabah said, should be "reviewed" in light of its delegates' actions during the election.
"In my opinion, you have to apply the rules of the United Nations to this issue," he suggested. "A member of OPEC that has not paid its dues for so many years [should not be allowed to] exercise full rights of membership, and, furthermore, the right of veto. We may need to review the statutes of the organization itself [in the future]."
