Iraq - Romania Wants the Debt Back

At the middle of December, Romanian will discuss the terms in which Iraq will return its debts of more than 2.5 billion USD, according to AFP.

Iraqi Finance minister, Adel Abdel Mahdi, is expected to come to Bucharest on the 17th December to negotiate with the Romanian side the debts of the former regime in Baghdad. The visit of the Iraqi Finance Minister is not a surprise for Romania taking into account the fact that a few days ago the most industrialised countries of the world decided to annul 80% of the debts of approximately 40 billion USD that Iraq should have returned to all these states.

Romania doesn’t have any international obligation towards accepting this 80% debt annulment, since it is not country member of the Club in Paris. This is why, our country and the Bulgarians as well, will fight to recover the entire value of the debt. More than that, Mihai Tanasescu, Romanian Finance Minister, sent letters to the countries in South-Eastern Europe, which are not member of the Club in Paris, for them to have common position, and to target the integral recovery of their debts.

CONSISTENCY . "Mahdi will discuss with his Romanian counterpart, Mihai Tanasescu", stated the Government’s spokesperson, Despina Neagoe, also saying that the two officials will try to find a solution for Romania to get its money back. Under the pressure of the treaty signed by the 19 most industrialized states, part of the Club in Paris, after four years of intense negotiations, and after the American pressures , the authorities in Bucharest decided that Romania won’t agree with the annulment of the Iraqi debt.

Actually, four months ago, the Romanian External Affairs Minister, Mircea Geoana, wanted to say that the recovery of the debt can be made in more than one way, either "placing a sum of money owned in an investment fund or creating a bank where Romanian should own a part of the shares". (By Anca Aldea)