Qatar decides to chop most of the Iraqi debts

An official in the Qatari foreign ministry announced yesterday that Qatar will chop most of its debts due to be paid by Iraq, and will also discuss chopping the remaining sums.

The decision was taken following the talks which were held in Doha between the Qatari crown prince Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and the American envoy James baker, according to the Qatari news agency.

The agency gave no mention to the size of the Iraqi debts owed to Qatar. However, Iraq's total debts to the Gulf states are estimated at 45 billion dollars.

The visit of the American envoy to Qatar falls in the course of a Middle East tour which includes several Arab Gulf states to alleviate or chop Iraqi debts.

Baker had recently made a European tour and another Asian one during which he was able to get promises from senior officials in Europe and Asia to alleviate debts due to be paid by Iraq. The total debts that Iraq has to pay is estimated at 120 billion dollars.