September 20, 2007	Thursday	Ramazan 07, 1428

MOSCOW, Sept 19: Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari invited Russian business to invest in the reconstruction of his country during a visit to Moscow on Wednesday.

But Zebari told reporters at a press conference with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, that Russian companies were welcome to bid for contracts but would not be given special treatment.

“We are hoping for the participation of Russian groups in the reconstruction of the Iraqi economy... We have no preference for the Russians nor do we have anything against them,” he said.

“We need Russian groups to reconstruct the infrastructure and the power stations,” he added.

Zebari said the question of West Qurna 2 oil field, which Russian firm Lukoil had been given rights to exploit in 1997 before it was expelled from the country, would be resolved shortly by a Russo-Iraq commission.

All contracts issued under the regime of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein, with whom Russia enjoyed special relations, are under review by the new Iraqi government. —AFP