Iraq, Iran start talks over disputed oil well

Iran and Iraq have begun talks to try to resolve a dispute over an inactive oil well in a sensitive area along the nearly 1,500-km border between the two countries, their foreign ministers said on Thursday.

Iraq’s Hoshiyar Zebari met Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki in a move to cool tensions between the neighbors after a small contingent of Iranian troops moved into an oilfield inside Iraqi territory last month and Iraq vowed it would not give up an inch of its land.

Their comments at a news conference after the meeting made clear the essence of the dispute had not been resolved. Mottaki said Iranian troops had been told to withdraw “to their original locations,” but Zebari indicated they had not moved far enough. Reuters