Arab Summit to be held in Baghdad

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Arab League’s decision to hold the forthcoming Arab Summit in Baghdad was a “recognition” that Iraq had surpassed its difficulties, Iraq‘s Vice-President Adel Abdul-Mahdi said during his reception of Arab League’s Secretary General Amru Moussa on Saturday. VP Mahdi further expressed his hopes that the Summit will “crown a new phase of openness for Iraq‘s Arab and Regional horizon.” “The Arab League’s decision to hold the Arab Summit in Baghdad was a recognition that Iraq had surpassed its major difficulties, and that the Arab World and the International Community have begun to understand the significance of openness towards Iraq and the building of positive relations with it,” Abdul-Mahdi said, describing the UN Security Council’s recent decisions to lift sanctions against Iraq as “an important step that must be followed with other steps.” Amru Moussa arrived in Baghdad on Saturday, on a visit aimed at “getting acquainted with Iraq‘s preparations to host the Arab Summit in Baghdad next March, as well as the activation of the decisions taken by the last Arab Summit held in Libya, to support Iraq‘s economic development and its active participation in building different state sectors.” The summit also aims at encouraging Arab investment in Iraq. QM (A) / SKH/SR 9