UN chief visits Iraq for talks
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is in Baghdad for talks with
Iraqi officials, Radio Liberty reported.
Iraqi state television said on December 6 that Ban met with Foreign
Minister Hoshyar Zebari but provided no more information.
Ban came to Baghdad after his visit to neighboring Kuwait.
A number of outstanding issues remain between the two countries
related to Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait, which was ordered by
Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
On December 5 in Kuwait, Ban said that "it is time to usher in a
new era of cooperation between the two neighbors."
Another item expected to be on Ban's agenda is relations between
Iraq's federal government and its autonomous Kurdish region.
Kurdish authorities in the oil-rich region are seeking more
political and economic powers, a move strongly opposed by
Baghdad.