Iraqi PM urges dialogue to contain tension with Kuwait

Jun 4, 2009, 9:08 GMT

Baghdad - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki pledged that friction between Iraq and Kuwait could be settled by dialogue, in the latest attempt to contain tension between both countries, local media reported on Thursday.

'Calmness and dialogue will help resolve all the problems inherited from the deposed regime,' al-Sabah newspaper quoted al-Maliki as saying following his meeting with Kuwaiti ambassador to Iraq Ali al-Mu'min on Wednesday.

The meeting came as al-Maliki attempts to contain a week-long media and political showdown between both countries triggered after Kuwait urged the United Nations not to lift sanctions on Iraq before Baghdad paid back its debts and the remaining war reparations for the invasion of the Gulf state by former president Saddam Hussein in 1990.

'The two brotherly and neighboring sides can ensure their rights through dialogue,' Maliki said.

Enraged by Kuwait's stance, Iraqi members of parliament (MPs) have called on their government to file a complaint to the UN Security Council against Kuwait for its part in supporting the US-led invasion to the country in 2003.

They also urged a halt to the reparation payments and demanded compensation for Iraqis who, they say, had been sacked by the Kuwaiti government following the 1991 'liberation war.'

In a tit for tat, Kuwaiti lawmakers urged their government to recall the ambassador from Baghdad in protest what they saw as 'attacks' by Iraqi MPs.

Iraq has been urging the Security Council to lift the remaining sanctions, particularly those concerning war reparations. The move would enable the country to exit from the terms of Chapter 7 of the United Nations charter, which allow for the imposition of sanctions on states with respect to 'acts of aggression.'

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said during a recent visit to Baghdad that the world body is considering lifting all sanctions as the Security Council is due to conduct a review in June.

Kuwait, however, urged the UN to reconsider the move. Kuwaiti officials said their country has received about 13 billion dollars in war reparations from Iraq but another 25.5 billion dollars remain unpaid. Kuwaiti officials also say that Baghdad owes their country around 16 billion dollars in other debt.

Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi on Tuesday called for a mending of differences with Kuwait for the good of the two peoples, Aswat-al Iraq reported.

Al-Hasemi said the Iraqi leadership is holding meetings with Kuwaiti diplomatic representatives to discuss the Iraqi-Kuwait relations and contain the rift.