Iraq sees Korea as partner: Choi

Iraq sees South Korea as a good partner for the reconstruction of the war-torn country, a top Korean government official said yesterday.

"Iraq seems to think of Korea as its economic partner more than other Western countries considering the country`s experience in economic development," Knowledge Economy Minister Choi Kyung-hwan told reporters yesterday.

Choi visited Iraq last week, leading a 57-member Korean delegation for the first forum on strengthening ties between Korea and Iraq on economic and energy sectors in Baghdad. It was the first official visit by a group of South Korean government officials and business leaders to the war-torn country of Iraq, officials said.

"The trip was meaningful because it has built mutual trust between the two in Korea`s participation of the reconstruction projects Iraq. There will be follow-ups soon," he said.



In a related development, the Philippines has announced its intention to buy facilities and materials of light-water nuclear reactors built by the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization - a government consortium involving the European Union, the United States, South Korea and Japan. The reactors were originally intended for use in North Korea.

Lawmakers from the Philippines visited the minister with a personally handwritten letter by President Gloria Arroyo to President Lee Myung-bak, asking the government to delay the bidding process for the sale of the KEDO facilities and materials. The Philippines wants to participate in the bid, but finds doing so difficult as it prepares for a presidential election in May, officials said.

The lawmakers from the Southeast Asian country said they would also consider buying South Korean nuclear power reactors in the future, they added.

(christory@heraldm.com)



By Cho Chung-un