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Iraq's acceptance of the unconditional return of U.N. weapons inspectors is a positive step to build upon, said Abu-Ragheb
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AMMAN,
October 4 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Jordanian Prime Minister
Ali Abu-Ragheb has reaffirmed that the kingdom will not be used as a
launch-pad for any strike by the United States on Iraq, two countries
with which Jordan has "strategic" relations.
"Jordan
will not be a launch-pad for any attack on Iraq or any Arab
nation," Abu-Ragheb told the Dubai Business Satellite Channel
Thursday night, October 3, in statements reproduced by Amman
newspapers Friday, October 4.
He
stressed that Iraq's acceptance of the unconditional return of U.N.
weapons inspectors and the deal worked out between Baghdad's envoys
and chief U.N. arms inspector Hans Blix in Vienna were positive steps
that should be built upon, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
"There
is a need to pursue the dialogue between the United Nations and Iraq
and work towards implementing Security Council resolutions for the
return of arms inspectors and this should be followed by a lifting of
sanctions on Iraq," Abu-Ragheb said.
"We
believe that the Iraq issue is a very dangerous one and the results of
any military operation will have negative repercussions for the region
and will affect its stability and its future," Abu-Ragheb
stressed.
Jordan's
position on Iraq is "clear", he said, and consists in
"finding a diplomatic solution ... through the United
Nations".
The
Jordanian prime minister acknowledged that Amman was toeing a fine
line to maintain a balance between its relations with the United
States and Iraq, AFP said.
"We
have political, economic and strategic ties with the United States and
these relations are very important for us," he said.
"We
also have historic, strategic and economic ties with our brothers in
Iraq and we work to balance these ties.
"But
in the end Jordan's interests come first and we hope that we could
help Iraq avert a military strike and spare the region the
repercussions of such a strike," Abu-Ragheb said.
Jordan
relies heavily on U.S. economic aid which totals 235 million dollars
for 2002 and depends on Iraq, its main trading partner, for all its
oil needs, half of which it gets for free and the other half at a
preferential rate.
A
war on Iraq would particularly affect Jordan's economy, the
Dubai-based Shuaa Capital investment bank said in a report this week.
"Jordanian
companies have been benefiting from a highly prosperous relationship
with Iraq, reflected by strong growth in such industries as
pharmaceuticals, tobacco and steel," the report said.
"Iraq
at its end has been supplying Jordan with crude oil at highly
preferential rates which has been a godsend to the local industries;
the threatened action against Iraq puts all that into jeopardy,"
it said.
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