Iraqi President Ghazi al-Yawar arrived in Kuwait Saturday for the first ever official visit by an Iraqi head of state, during which he is expected to discuss a host of issues including debt and war reparations.
The visit comes 18 months after the toppling of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, who invaded Kuwait in August 1990 and occupied it for seven months before being expelled by a US-led coalition in the 1991 Gulf War.
Heading a high-ranking government delegation that includes Defence Minister Hazem Shaalan, Yawar was greeted at the airport by Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, representing Emir Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah.
Yawar was received as a distinguished head of state with the Iraqi national anthem playing and national flags flying over Kuwait Airport.
"I am here to greet the Kuwaiti people and leadership. We always felt love and affection towards the Kuwaiti people. The Iraqi people had no hand in what happened in the past," Yawar told reporters on arrival.
Yawar praised Kuwait for playing a key role in the US-led ouster of Saddam Hussein last year and said his current tour will also take him to Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. The Iraqi interim president is due to meet the emir for talks centering on "bilateral relations and a request for economic aid for Iraq," a Kuwaiti official said Friday.
Shaalan said talks will cover all "economic and security issues and the border because the border issue is very important for us."
Kuwaiti officials however avoided giving a direct answer to questions on whether the emirate will consider reducing huge Gulf War reparations it seeks from Iraq.
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