Iraq eager to establish naval lines with all Arab states

The Iraqi secretary of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, Jamil Ibrahim, said on Friday that Iraq is eager to establish naval lines with all Arab states.

He added that Iraq is ready to receive any ship coming from Qatar or Bahrain or any Arab state towards the Iraqi port, whether loaded with commodities or passengers.

He continued that the ship Jabal Ali has witnessed a rapid increase in the number of passengers it transports.

He added that the success of the naval line experience between Iraq and the United Arab Emirates has opened new prospects for Arab shpping companies in order to strengthen cooperation ties among the Arab states' peoples.

The ship Jabal Ali, which operates as from Dubai and represents the only naval line for transporting passengers to Iraq, started its travels as of November 1998 after receiving the green light from the UN, which has imposed a multilateral embargo on Iraq since August 6, 1990.