Rice Urges Broad International Participation in Iraq Compact
Washington â€" Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, praising Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s agenda of national reconciliation, economic recovery and good governance, urged the international community to support Iraq’s efforts by participating in the International Compact for Iraq.
(Media-Newswire.com) - Washington – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, praising Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s agenda of national reconciliation, economic recovery and good governance, urged the international community to support Iraq’s efforts by participating in the International Compact for Iraq.
The compact, signed in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, May 3, establishes a five-year plan for Iraq to achieve economic self-sufficiency and seeks commitments from the international community for debt relief and financial and technical assistance. To date, 60 nations and organizations have agreed to take part in the compact. Rice urged the signatories to seek even broader international participation.
“Under the compact, Iraq has undertaken important steps for advanced economic reforms and good governance -- including priority goals: reforming fuel subsidies, restructuring the hydrocarbon sector, and sharing oil revenues fairly among all Iraqis,” Rice said at the signing ceremony. “In return, Iraq’s compact partners have agreed to help Iraq by providing substantial debt relief, along with significant financial and technical assistance.”
She said the compact has an impact beyond its economic measures because it provides “powerful incentives for the Iraqi government to function more effectively and to achieve its broader national goals of political reconciliation and security for all Iraqis.”
Rice had a clear message for those countries that still carry large Iraqi debts from the Saddam Hussein era. “[T]o realize its full economic promise, to build a new economic relationship with the world, and to fulfill the goals of the compact, Iraq needs for those creditors that have not yet done so to reduce or to forgive its Saddam-era debts,” she said.
According to U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Russia, China, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt and Bulgaria each hold more than $1 billion in Iraqi debt.
Rice said the signing of the compact marks the beginning of a process in which the international community will monitor Iraq’s progress toward its stated goals and work to ensure that the donors honor their commitments.
The secretary of state remains in Sharm el-Sheikh May 4 for the first ministerial-level meeting of the Iraqi Neighbors’ Conference.
( USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov ) By David Shelby USINFO Staff Writer
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