SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS

The provinces, Basra, Missan and Dhiqar account for more than 80 percent of the proved oil reserves of the country's 18 provinces and provide a large share of the national income.

Diplomats told the Financial Times the provinces feel their representation compared with their economic contribution is disproportionate. The cabinet led by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi includes only one representative from the three provinces.

Recently, members of the municipal council of Basra, Iraq's second largest city, have been holding talks with officials from councils in the two neighboring provinces on establishing a federal region in the south, as is established in the Kurdish north.

Walid Khadduri, an expert on Iraq and editor of the Cyprus-based Middle East Economic Survey, said the talks on self-rule are alarming.

"It could weaken the state and lead to the eventual fragmentation of the country", he said.