Iraqi oil: Deal or no deal?

"The United States was not involved in any decisions to award contracts, to make determinations of what kinds of contracts would be offered, to provide advice over what kinds of contracts would be offered. These are technical experts that we have working in the Iraqi Oil Ministry, who are similar to the technical experts we have working in many ministries throughout the government. Saying that they are somehow responsible for this matter, would be equivalent to saying that the person who does your taxes is responsible for how much income you earned. It’s simply not true," said U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Tom Casey.

Frustrated Iraqis trying to tank up their cars faced miles-long gas lines on Tuesday — a stark reminder that a country with one of the world's largest oil reserves still has major challenges delivering fuel to its people, writes Sebastian Abbot for the Associated Press.