Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz on Monday warned Turkey that British and US proposals to impose “smart” sanctions on Iraq would damage the Turkish economy, said AFP.
In a related development, Jordanian lawmakers urged the government to reject the "smart" sactions plan.
During talks Monday with Turkish envoy Faruq Logoglu, Aziz warned of “the negative consequences on Iraqi-Turkish economic relations if Ankara implements the resolution” on which the UN Security Council is expected to vote at the start of July, the agency said.
But he also stressed “Iraq's will to preserve its ties with Turkey in the interests of the peoples of the two countries.”
Turkey, meanwhile, also wants “to promote its relations with Iraq in different fields, and my visit falls within that context,” said Logoglu, undersecretary of state at the Turkish foreign ministry.
Britain, with US backing, has circulated a draft at the Security Council that would abolish curbs on civilian trade with Iraq, while tightening a weapons ban and controls on smuggling outside a UN oil-for-food deal.
Iraq on June 4 suspended more than two million barrels per day of oil exports under the UN program in protest at the plan, although oil products continue to flow to Iraq's neighbors, including Turkey, outside of UN financial constraints.
Before the halt in exports, Aziz had warned Turkey and Jordan that their lucrative oil and trade links with Iraq would grind to a halt if they cooperated with smart sanctions.
JORDAN’S PARLIAMENT URGES TO GOVERNMENT TO REJECT ‘SMART SANCTIONS’
Jordan’s parliament on Monday urged the government to reject the “smart” sanctions and called anew for a total lifting of UN-imposed sanctions on Iraq, reported the Jordan Times newspaper.
The appeal was contained in a statement issued by the Lower House 11 days after Iraqi Parliamentary Speaker Saadun Hammadi urged Jordanian MPs to pressure their government, which relies heavily on Iraq for its oil needs, to reject the “smart” sanctions.
“The embargo on Iraq should be lifted and all sorts of sanctions imposed on it should be ended because they are unjust,” said the MP's statement, which was carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra.
It also underscored Parliament's “total rejection of the so-called smart sanctions which are aimed at further isolating this Arab nation and undermining the national and economic interests of regional countries, particularly Jordan.”
The lawmakers specifically called on the government to "reject these sanctions and to continue its efforts for a lifting of the embargo” on Baghdad.
Last week, Jordanian Prime Minister Ali Abu Ragheb voiced criticism over US-British efforts to rally UN support for an amendment to the current sanctions system on Iraq.
“The best solution is a dialogue between Iraq and the United Nations to find a formula that guarantees the implementation of the Security Council resolutions as well as lifting the embargo on Baghdad,” Abul Ragheb said last week.
Amman signed a 2001 trade protocol with Baghdad in November under which it exports $450 million worth of goods to Iraq per year and receives in return five million tons of Iraqi oil, half for free and the rest at a preferential price.
Within the same context, the paper said that Jordanian local exports to Iraq sank by around 18 percent during the first four months of this year compared to the same period last year, according to the Jordanian Department of Statistics.
Jordanian exports also reach the Iraqi market under the UN-approved oil-for-food program, which allows Iraq to sell oil and use the proceeds to buy humanitarian supplies.
But several hitches are blocking the aspired flow of goods to Iraq, Jordanian businessmen have said. “The quality is the criteria which determines the volume of exports,” said Talal Halawani, chairman of Liberty Shipping and Transport Company.
“Jordanian industrialists should understand that Iraqis are no longer forced to buy their products. They have the choice of importing from neighbouring countries such as Syria, Egypt and Turkey,” he told the paper.
“Jordanian industries must excel in terms of quality, and remember that they are no longer the spoiled child,” added Halawani - Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
