U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is piling pressure on Iraq to allow Kurdish oil exports to restart or face sanctions alongside Iran, eight sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Iraq’s oil ministry has announced the resumption of oil exports from northern Iraq’s semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region

Iraqi authorities have rejected reports that they have allowed a resumption of oil exports from the Kurdistan region because of threats by the US government.

Flows of crude oil through a pipeline from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq to Turkey could restart soon after an almost two-year shutdown.

Iraq’s oil ministry repeated that it’s ready to restart exports from the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan via a pipeline to Turkey that’s been shut for almost two years.