Kuwait City (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Kuwait has named its first ambassador to Iraq since the invasion by Saddam Hussein’s forces in 1990. Ali al-Momen, a former military chief of staff, will hold the post; the announcement did not however say when the Kuwaiti embassy in Baghdad would reopen.
According to Foreign Minister Undersecretary Khaled Jarallah, the new embassy will probably be located in the Green Zone, a high security area where the US embassy and Iraqi government offices are based.
Iraq and Kuwait had no relations for nearly two decades, until after the US invasion toppled Saddam in 2003. Bilateral relations have improved since then and Iraq has already reopened its embassy in Kuwait.
Kuwait’s decision is further sign that relations between Iraq and other Arab countries are improving.
On 7 July the United Arab Emirates (UAE) waived all of Iraq’s US$ 7 billion debt (loans, plus interest) and officially appointed an ambassador to Baghdad.
There have been no Arab ambassadors in Iraq since Egypt's envoy was kidnapped and killed shortly after arriving in 2005.
With the reopening of the diplomatic missions of Kuwait and the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain might follow suit.