Iraq leaders had wanted to meet Rosneft in Baghdad before a visit by the country’s oil minister, Jabar al-Luaibi, to Russia in March, according to the media outlet.

“Rosneft is important because it owns 60% of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline, and we want to use this pipeline,” the oil minister told Atlantic Council.

Baghdad has increased its pressure on the KRG to restore its authority over the region’s oil industry since a military operation against the Kurds in October 16.

Rosneft had paid authorities in the Kurdistan Region an advance of $1.3 billion as part of production sharing deals that have angered Baghdad.

Rosneft announced last year that it had signed agreements for five oil blocks in the Region, which is at loggerheads with Iraq's central government over independence.

Following the agreement, the Iraqi oil ministry said that only it or the federal government had the right to negotiate investments in the country's energy sector.

Reporter’s code: 50101