Iraq: Iraq Inquiry Shows Oil Was a Consideration for U.K. before War

Jul 6, 2016 | Javier Blas, Bloomberg
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The U.K. government held talks with Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc to ensure British energy companies were "well-placed to pick up contracts in the aftermath" of the invasion of Iraq, according to declassified documents released as part of an official inquiry. Although the report, overseen by former civil servant John Chilcot, doesn’t explicitly say oil played a role in the war, documents published on Wednesday show British officials discussed how to obtain "substantial business for U.K. companies" in the energy sector.