U.S. Backs Iraq-Syria Oil Pipeline to Bypass the Strait of Hormuz

The United States supports plans by Iraq and Syria to rebuild a damaged oil pipeline that would carry crude from Kirkuk to Syria’s Mediterranean coast and bypass the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. backs the Iraqi and Syrian efforts to rebuild the Kirkuk-Baniyas oil pipeline and diminish Iran’s potential to disrupt Hormuz traffic in the future, an official at the U.S. State Department told Reuters. The United States also expects U.S. companies to play a role in the reconstruction of the Kirkuk-Baniya