UAE | Government

UAE scraps billions in Iraq debt

The UAE has written off all debts owed by Iraq and named a new ambassador to Baghdad.

  • Gulf News Report
  • Published: 16:16 July 6, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan meets Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki in Abu Dhabi.
  • Image Credit: WAM
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Abu Dhabi: The UAE has written off all debts owed by Iraq and named a new ambassador to Baghdad, it was announced on Sunday.

"The UAE's decision to cancel the debts accumulated by Iraq is an expression of brotherhood and solidarity between the two countries and is to help the Iraqi government carry out its reconstruction and rehabilitation plans," President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan was quoted by WAM as saying during a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki.

The meeting was attended by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and other senior officials.

Shaikh Khalifa cited the improvement in the security situation in Iraq and said this would boost the success of the political process in that country.

He urged "all segments of the Iraqi society and its political movements to support the legitimate government, denounce all sorts of sectarian violence and join the political process," WAM said.

Al Maliki praised the decision and said it will help "improve the Iraqi economy and enhance the efforts to restore security and stability."

According to the Foreign Minister, Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the cancelled debts "amounts to $4 billion, including interests and arrears," WAM quoted him as saying

But Reuters quoted "a UAE diplomatic source" as saying the total sum that would be written off was almost $7 billion including interest and arrears.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet approved the appointment of the UAE envoy to India Abdullah Al Shehi as the new ambassador to Iraq.

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