Home
Ministers explain agreement over Kuwaiti port to parliament
13/06/2011 15:46
Erbil, June 13 (AKnews) – Iraqi Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Transportation will attend the parliamentary session on Thursday to justify a recent agreement with Kuwait over both countries competing port projects.
Two weeks ago, Kuwait announced it would be ready to talk and sign an agreement to guarantee that Kuwait’s new Mubarak Port will not interfere with Iraq’s ports Umm Qasr and Al-Faw.
Mubarak port will be built on Boubyan Island in Kuwait, just a few kilometers away from Umm Qasr, Iraq’s only deepwater port, and the site of Iraq’s Al Faw port project, by Korean company Hyundai. Mubarak Port is projected to reach completion by 2016 at a cost of $1.1bn and will process 1.8m containers a year by 2015.
Iraq fears that the construction of the new port will take business away from their ports and effect fishermen working in the Gulf. According to economists, Iraq’s main port will lose 60 per cent of its business if Kuwait goes ahead with its plans.
Historic tensions have been flared by the announcement. Iraq-Kuwait relations have just started to normalize after effort to resolve conflicts that arose during Sadddam Hussein’s time in power.
Joint committees have recently been formed to address major issues currently blocking reconciliation, including the payment of reparations to Kuwait for the Gulf war, the disputed position of the border, Kuwaitis missing in Iraq since the conflict and the management of joint-owned oil fields.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
13/06/2011 15:46
Erbil, June 13 (AKnews) – Iraqi Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Transportation will attend the parliamentary session on Thursday to justify a recent agreement with Kuwait over both countries competing port projects.
Two weeks ago, Kuwait announced it would be ready to talk and sign an agreement to guarantee that Kuwait’s new Mubarak Port will not interfere with Iraq’s ports Umm Qasr and Al-Faw.
Mubarak port will be built on Boubyan Island in Kuwait, just a few kilometers away from Umm Qasr, Iraq’s only deepwater port, and the site of Iraq’s Al Faw port project, by Korean company Hyundai. Mubarak Port is projected to reach completion by 2016 at a cost of $1.1bn and will process 1.8m containers a year by 2015.
Iraq fears that the construction of the new port will take business away from their ports and effect fishermen working in the Gulf. According to economists, Iraq’s main port will lose 60 per cent of its business if Kuwait goes ahead with its plans.
Historic tensions have been flared by the announcement. Iraq-Kuwait relations have just started to normalize after effort to resolve conflicts that arose during Sadddam Hussein’s time in power.
Joint committees have recently been formed to address major issues currently blocking reconciliation, including the payment of reparations to Kuwait for the Gulf war, the disputed position of the border, Kuwaitis missing in Iraq since the conflict and the management of joint-owned oil fields.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
