Turkey’s Energy Minister Taner Yildiz (R) speaks with Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government Natural Resources Minister Ashti Hawrami (L) at the Iraq-Kurdistan Oil and Gas Conference at Arbil in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, December 2, 2013. Turkey said on Monday it stood by a bilateral oil deal with Iraq’s Kurdistan region that bypassed central government but wanted to win Baghdad’s support by drawing it into the arrangement. Reuters reported that Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan signed a multi-billion-dollar energy package last week, infuriating a central Baghdad government which claims sole authority over Iraqi oil exports and is wary of any moves that could extend political autonomy to the region. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ – Tags: ENERGY POLITICS)