Saudi Arabia, UAE to invest $6 bln in Iraq

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have reached an agreement on Sunday to allocate $6 billion to support investments in Iraq and form business councils, the official Iraqi news agency reported.

The two Gulf nations also agreed with Iraq to form joint business councils to fund trade and joint ventures, the agency said, quoting Abdul al-Razzaq al-Zuhairi, head of the Federation of Iraqi Chambers of Commerce (FICC).

“Iraq must keep up with the pace of the world and establish its trade process globally, taking into account the standards of the World Bank,” al-Zuhairi said. He added that Iraq’s central geographic location positions it well to be competitive in global trade, connecting Europe with Asia.