Iraqi might reject loans offered during Kuwait conference: Source
Kuwaiti Emir (right) and Iraqi Prime Minister (left) during their meeting Wednesday in Kuwait
Speaking to Alghad Press, the cabinet source said, “Abadi will discuss during the meeting today the loans offered to Iraq during the Kuwait International Conference for the Reconstruction of Iraq, estimated at US$ 27 billion. Rejecting the loans is possible.”
Iraq, according to the source, “can reject the loans, in case it depended on foreign investments. The loans will be tackled in the meeting today.”
“World Bank previously urged the Iraqi government not to get more loans, including the facilitated ones. However, the participant countries offered Iraq loans that threaten its wealth in case of not organizing the investments.
The central bank said during the conference that the government cannot afford more loans after reaching the maximum rate over the past four years and that it will pay back for them over the coming six decades, the source said.
Iraqi officials previously said that the reconstruction of Iraq, in wake of a three-year war against Islamic State militants, requires US$88.2 billion and giving priority to the housing issue.