Iraqi vice-president in Morocco

King Hassan II received on Wednesday Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassine Ramadan who handed the king a communique from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

No details were disclosed on the content of the message.

During a press conference on Wednesday in Rabat, Ramadan urged Arabs to support the lifting of U.N. sanctions imposed on his country for its invasion of Kuwait. "We are demanding the lifting of the embargo at the Arab level... We refuse that the Iraqi people die slowly because of the embargo," said the Iraqi envoy, who is visiting Morocco on the last leg of a tour that already led him to Tunisia and Algeria. "My trip to Morocco is a political visit related to the embargo imposed on Iraq. I was in Tunisia and Algeria for the same purpose," he said.

Baghdad needs to satisfy the U.N. Special Commission (UNSOM) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) before the Security Council can consider easing the sanctions imposed in 1990, MAP reported.

The sanctions have been under discussion at the UN during the last two days, as Richard Butler (head of the UN Special inspection team) seeks to convince the UN that the sanctions should remain on Iraq because of its supposed lack of compliance with UN resolutions. Butler had said that he "can outline a road map" for Iraq of things Iraq should do if it wants to have the sanctions removed.

Regarding the possible holding of an Arab Summit, Ramadan said, "The Arab action will yield no result in the absence of Iraq." He added that his country would not be committed to applying any resolution or recommendation issued by a summit to which it was not invited.

Ramadan denied that his talks with the authorities in Algeria and Tunisia dealt with the possible holding of an Arab summit, adding that Baghdad is ready to attend such summit if it is invited.