Iraq can throw off 'peace threat' status

Kuwait's ambassador in Baghdad Ali al-Moemen said on Tuesday that his country would not prevent steps to exempt Iraq's exit from Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, which classifies Iraq as a country that threatens world peace. Moemen said in an interview with Arabstoday that a joint committee by both countries agreed on most common disputes, while reaching solutions on the rest was "just a matter of time". "Kuwait's position has nothing to do with exempting Iraq from being subject to Chapter VII. We are also a country that suffered oppression at the hands of the former Iraqi regime, and we have a lot of evidence to prove it. We just try to regain our rights through compensations granted by the United Nations, which is the only organisation to decide if Iraq should be exempted from Chapter VII or not," said the Kuwaiti ambassador. Chapter VII sets out the UN Security Council's powers to maintain peace. It allows the council to "determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression" and to take military and nonmilitary action to "restore international peace and security". Moemen added: "The Iraqi government had gone a long way in implementing the related UN decrees. Now, it has the right to submit its report to the UN which will assess whether Iraqi efforts have been enough for them to be exempted." The ambassador also said Iraqi-Kuwaiti relations were now in a "promising phase" and had "great potential", saying his country planned to strengthen bilateral ties by establishing two new consulates in Erbil and Basra, as well as a number of diplomatic bureaus in other Iraqi provinces. "The history between the two countries inspires us to share relations based on mutual respect and the will of ensuring a better future for both our people," said the diplomat. Moemen also lashed out at speculations linking the recent improvement in Iraqi-Kuwaiti relations to the alleged decrease in Kuwaiti influence on Gulf strategies and positions. "The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is a unified body that adopts a collective strategy. The improvement in some foreign relations of one or more of the GCC members shouldn't be considered as an indication of friction within the organisation, as such improvements reflect the collective position of all GCC members, particularly regarding relations with Iraq. All GCC countries decided to be open to Iraq after [the US-led invasion of] 2003," said Moemen. The ambassador ruled out the prospect of founding a political coalition combining Iraq, Kuwait and Iran, saying the interests of all three nations did not coincide. Moemen praised the recent visit of a Kuwaiti delegation to Iraq and its positive reception by the Iraqi people, saying several Kuwaiti companies were planning projects to boost the economies of both countries. Iraq has been subject to Chapter VII of the UN charter since 1990, due to the Iraqi invasion to Kuwait in Saddam Hussein's era. The chapter allows the use of military force against Iraq if needed, while it also includes freezing the Iraqi government's accounts in international financial institutions, as they are supposed to pay compensation to those affected by the invasion.