President Rashid Meets Arab States Ambassadors

On Wednesday, January 25, 2023, the President of the Republic of Iraq, Abdullatif Jamal Rashid met with Arab Countries' Ambassadors to Iraq, at the Baghdad Palace.

Formation of the new government following the general elections took time, but it yielded good results, His Excellency said while adding that the government has an earnest desire to implement its agenda, improve public services and prioritise the reconstruction of public infrastructure. These are going to be achieved due to the prevailing peace and stability in Iraq after years of wars, terrorism, and violence, HE, noted.

The President spoke about his participation in the Arab League Summit in Algeria and hailed its results, the Arab League's role, and Algeria's success in organising the Summit. HE said that the leaders and heads of Arab States have welcomed the formation of government and Iraq's role in resolving the thorny issues among the Arab countries. I was delighted to visit Egypt and Algeria, he added.

Preservation of the environment has become a global issue, and the states of the region are extremely interested in improving the environment, and tackling water shortages, the President underlined. European states in the WEF'a Annual Meeting, in Davos, were interested in Iraq's participation, and they had expressed their desire to cooperate, and they do believe that we are a rich and important region and a centre of civilisation, the President said.

Iraq offers promising investment opportunities, His Excellency emphasised while saying that coordination and cooperation should be made with the Arab states to create an investment environment in Iraq through bilateral and tripartite cooperation with the fraternal Arab countries.

We hope that the national budget will be approved soon, which has been delayed for three years causing the delay in the completion of the vital projects, the President said, while calling upon the Ambassadors for encouraging businesses of their countries to invest in Iraq. Iraq enjoys stability and security but regrettably, the media outlets often fail to reflect on this image of Iraq. HE called upon the ambassadors to convey the true image of Iraq and the improved security status of the Iraqi cities. The leaders of governments, the states, and political figures expressed their countries' commitment to supporting Iraq's security and stability and their desire to build effective relationships with Iraq, he asserted.

The ambassadors expressed their gratitude to His Excellency President Rashid for the invitation, highlighting their countries' keenness and desire to further expand the cooperation, in a way that would most benefit the interest of all and achieve progress, prosperity, and the future that the peoples aspire to.

The UAE's ambassador stated that his country is keen to cement the ties with Iraq and affirmed that there are companies that stand ready to invest in Iraq. The Syrian ambassador said that his government is optimistic that Iraq would have a crucial role to mend Arab relations and maintain the steps that have been taken.

The Saudi and Kuwaiti ambassadors expressed the same views on the need to invest in Iraq and work on adopting the agreement on investment protection that would motivate the investors to take the first practical step of their investments in Iraq. The Saudi ambassador said that the economy has become an alternative to the use of military force, and indicated that there should be further cooperation and coordination to facilitate procedures for the investors to take advantage of the available opportunities.

The Lebanese ambassador said that the private sector should be supported, where a genuine partnership is needed with the public sector.

The visiting ambassadors congratulated His Excellency President Rashid and the Iraqi people on the Iraqi National Football Team winning the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup.

 

Presedent