Saturday, October 23, 2004
Iran claims $97.2b reparations from Iraq: MEES
DUBAI: Iran has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to add 97.2 billion dollars to its Iraqi debt assessment to cover reparations for the 1980-1988 war between the two states, Middle East Economic Survey (MEES) reports in its latest edition.
Quoting "authoritative sources," the industry newsletter said the request, made in a letter sent to the IMF last month, "could not have come at a worse time for Iraq" as it negotiates a reduction in its foreign debt.
According to the IMF, Iraq is saddled with a foreign debt estimated at 120 billion dollars, excluding reparations it owes Kuwait for its 1990 invasion of the emirate and the subsequent Gulf War.
Pressure is building among Western creditors to reach an agreement on canceling all or part of the debt by the end of the year.
But key creditors in the Group of Seven industrialized nations are at odds over just how much should be forgiven immediately, with France advocating a 50-percent reduction and the United States and Britain urging a cut of 95 percent.
According to MEES, the Iranian claim covers the non-military cost of the war to Iran, and while it is not the first time Tehran has made such claims, it is the first time it has put its claims forward to an international organization.
It is unclear how the IMF, which concluded a debt sustainability analysis earlier this year, will deal with Tehran's request "since there is no UN resolution that takes into account the Iranian compensation claim," the Cyprus-based newsletter added in its edition due out on Monday. afp
Daily Times - All Rights Reserved