German foreign minister urges caution in investing in Iraq

Aug 1, 2008, 12:06 GMT

Berlin - German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has urged investors to show caution when considering opportunities in Iraq in remarks published in a German newspaper Friday.

Steinmeier was speaking to the Munich-based Muenchner Merkur 10 days after Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki visited Berlin to urge German companies to invest in Iraq, assuring them that the security situation had improved dramatically.

'We hope that the situation improves to the extent that it permits extending our business ties,' Steinmeier said.

'But not at any price,' he added, noting that attacks in Iraq had claimed 700 lives in June alone.

Steinmeier also recalled that Germans had been taken hostage in Iraq over the past year.

'The risk of abduction is still high and I well recall the months when we worried about German hostages in Iraq and still worry. These are factors that should not be ignored or glossed over,' he said.

While there were lucrative business opportunities in Iraq, companies should be cautious about sending their employees there, Steinmeier cautioned.

After talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel on July 22, al-Maliki claimed there had been 'great success' in improving security in Iraq. He urged German business to invest in Iraq.

Merkel was more cautious, saying only that the security situation was improving 'step by step.'

German Economy Minister Michael Glos paid a surprise visit to Baghdad on July 12, becoming the first German minister to do so since the 2003 invasion.

He also highlighted the opportunities in the country for German business.