'UAE to be top investor in Iraq'

Investment projects in Iraq by the UAE worth billions of dollars are to be announced in the coming months, Sharwan Al Waeli, Iraq's Minister of State for National Security, has revealed.

And the UAE is set to become the largest investor in the country, he added.

"The projects will include infrastructure ventures, hotels and resorts, malls and homes in a number of Iraqi cities, especially Karbala and Basra," he added on the sidelines of the Emergency and Crisis Management Conference in Abu Dhabi.

"The UAE will become the biggest investor in Iraq. Private Emirati companies are behind the investment plans, not the federal government.

"Economic links between the UAE and Iraq are growing stronger day by day. The UAE's decision to cancel debts owed by Iraq is an original Arab stance."

He said the political leadership in Iraq supported any UAE investment in the country.

"The current state of security and political stability in Iraq will increase foreign and Arab investment in the country, especially UAE investment," he added.

"There are attractive opportunities in Iraq today and we are currently negotiating with many Arab officials, especially UAE officials, to award contracts."

He expressed regret Arab companies had not won any contracts for new oil exploration projects in Iraq.

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