Iraqi- Algerian talks

The Iraqi government news agency has announced that the Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan discussed with the Algerian foreign minister Abdul Aziz Balkhadem, currently visiting Iraq "the American threats against Iraq and conditions in the occupied territories."

Ramadan stressed Iraq's desire to expand areas of cooperation and to cope with "the march of cooperation in the framework of the free marker agreement signed between the two sisterly countries in 2001, in being the main base for joint economic cooperation."

He added that Iraq and Algeria had taken important steps in the area of economic cooperation and that the coming phase requires more serious work and reciprocated visits by high ranking officials in the two states to draw work mechanism that can serve the interests of the two states.

Balkhadem arrived in Baghdad earlier on board of an Algerian plane on top of an official delegation in an official visit to Iraq that will last for several days. He told journalists at the airport that the visit aims at discussing means to strengthening bilateral relations between Algeria and Iraq.