By NNN-KUNA,
United Nations : Dr. Ibrahim Gambari, special adviser to the Secretary-General on the International Compact with Iraq, late Friday said the first Iraq Compact Annual Review Conference, scheduled to be held in Stockholm, Sweden, next week, will be another opportunity for the international community to reiterate its commitment to Iraq’s stability politically and economically.
“The Stockholm Conference offers an opportunity to reiterate the commitment of the international community to support Iraq in its efforts to achieve stability, peace and prosperity. I look forward to the continuous engagement of the international community in that regard,” Gambari told KUNA.
The conference, scheduled for May 29 at the Foreign Ministers level, will be co-chaired by Secretary-General and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki.
Gambari added that the participants in the high-level conference will “take stock of the partnership between Iraq and the international community” since the International Compact with Iraq was launched in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last May, and to “discuss the way forward.
” He expressed satisfaction that there are several achievements to report during the last twelve months, acknowledging, however, that “there is also room for improvement.”
Among the achievements he cited were the Iraqi “important” pieces of legislation which were passed by the parliament, including the Amnesty Law, the Election Law establishing the Iraqi High Electoral Commission; and the Law on Private Investment in Crude Oil Refining.
Quoting the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates, Gambari said the Iraqi economy will grow by eight percent in the next two years, adding that the parliament also passed the 2008 budget amounting to USD 48 billion – the largest in Iraq’s history – and of which some USD 19 billion is committed to capital investment in infrastructure and essential services.
From a total external debt of some USD 75 billion, he further noted, some USD 23 billion were settled in 2007-2008.
He also expressed satisfaction that the levels of violence have decreased in most parts of the country, “though the security situation remains fragile.”
“We continue to encourage the adoption of pending laws necessary for national dialogue and reconciliation,” he stressed.
Recalling council resolution 1770 of last year, Gambari said the UN has stepped up its activities in Iraq in a range of areas, including electoral and humanitarian assistance, human rights and political dialogue, vowing that the UN “will continue to strongly support Iraqis in achieving the benchmarks of the Compact.”
Under Secretary-General for Political Affairs Lynn Pascoe also told KUNA here “we strongly encourage Member States to take part in this event and make concrete commitments at the conference.
” It is also “important,” he added, that the “debt relief and other areas be carried out by the outside world, but there are also many obligations for the Iraqi government to do. It is a very good process and we hope to keep it moving forward.”
He described the compact as a “constant look at the road map and how much of it you can get each step of the way. I wish everyone had done more than they have, but we will keep working on it to try to get it through so that the compact will be a success, I hope.”
Iraqi Ambassador Hamid Al-Bayati expressed hope that the conference will mobilize the efforts of the international community towards the country’s development.
“The conference will be an important forum to review the economic and political developments in Iraq and the future prospects that will assist in the reconstruction process,” he said.