Kuwait Pledges $2 Billion for Iraq's Reconstruction
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Kuwait will lend $1 billion to Iraq and commit a further $1 billion of investment to the country, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah told an international conference on Iraq’s reconstruction on Wednesday.
Donors and investors have gathered in Kuwait this week to discuss efforts to rebuild Iraq’s economy and infrastructure as it emerges from a devastating conflict with Daesh militants who seized almost a third of the country.
“Kuwait will earmark $1 billion in loans to Iraq and will commit to another $1 billion as investments in Iraq,” said Sheikh Sabah, according to Reuters.
Iraq declared victory over Daesh in December, having taken back all the territory captured by the Takfiri militants in 2014 and 2015. The terrorists have also been largely defeated in neighboring Syria.
Rebuilding Iraq after three years of war with the terror group will cost more than $88 billion, with housing a particularly urgent priority, Iraqi officials say.
At the same conference, the United States said it was extending a $3 billion credit line but was not providing any direct government assistance. International NGOs have so far pledged $330 million in humanitarian assistance.
Iraq has suffered from decades of war since the US invasion of the Arab country in 2003.
