Following accusations that Iraq's SOMO company was involved in selling Iranian oil as Iraqi oil to help Tehran bypass sanctions, Iraqi Oil Minister Hayan Abdul Ghani revealed details of U.S.-Iraqi discussions on the matter.

Abdul Ghani stated, "The U.S. Navy detained Iranian tankers carrying oil and found documents indicating that it was Iraqi oil, despite being Iranian." He added in remarks on state television yesterday that "it was later revealed that these documents were forged, as the Iranian tankers falsified them to sell the oil to international companies as Iraqi."

The minister confirmed that Iraqi authorities "communicated with the U.S. side to clarify the details of the case, asserting that Iraq had no connection to it." He also noted that the U.S. side understood the matter.

These statements came after months of circulating reports accusing SOMO of exporting and smuggling Iranian oil, with threats of potential U.S. sanctions against the company. SOMO had previously denied these accusations.

On March 19, the Iraqi Navy announced the seizure of an unidentified ship in Iraqi territorial waters in the Gulf, suspected of fuel smuggling.

It is worth noting that since the unilateral U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal, Washington has tightened sanctions on Tehran, re-imposing harsh restrictions on several sectors, particularly oil.