Washington is moving to shape Iraq’s next government the old way, by threatening to choke off Baghdad’s access to its own oil dollars.

 https://x.com/HalaJaber/status/2015037210299433259

Hala Jaber

@HalaJaber

Washington is moving to shape Iraq’s next government the old way, by threatening to choke off Baghdad’s access to its own oil dollars. Iraq is “sovereign” until its elections produce the wrong winners. Then the US threatens to cut it off from its own oil dollars held in New York. This is coercion with a spreadsheet instead of a tank. This is the 1990s playbook, repackaged. Sanctions destroyed Iraq’s civilians then, and today “maximum pressure” is crushing Iran’s economy. Look across the map & the pattern repeats. Lebanon’s aid is conditioned on Hezbollah disarmament. Venezuela faces sanctions & asset seizures. Gaza reconstruction is blocked unless it passes through “approved” gates. The method varies only by country. Economic levers replace overt invasion while sovereignty is tolerated only when aligned. What Washington presents as diplomacy is in fact direct intervention in government formation through financial punishment (banks, blockades, & conditional “aid”) masquerading as support for democracy. https://tinyurl.com/ykmmc2uv

11:21 PM · Jan 24, 2026

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https://x.com/HalaJaber/status/2015037210299433259