There are positive signs that the decades old remittances problem will be resolved soon. Egyptian Minister of Immigration and Manpower Ahmed El-Borai stated that the Iraqi government would start paying $408 million in remittances due to Egyptians before the end of the holy month of Ramadan. The money is owed to some 637,000 Egyptian workers who were forced to flee Iraq during the Gulf War in the early 1990s, leaving their work and money behind. The move came after a meeting last week between Sharaf and Iraqi Deputy Foreign Minister Labid Abawi and an accompanying delegation in Cairo. Al-Borai attended the meeting. A diplomat who preferred to remain anonymous said that that step is likely to have a positive impact on Egyptian- Iraqi relations and open the door to cooperation between the two states in various fields. He added, however, there are other related issues that need to be resolved; namely the interest on the remittances across the last two decades, which is likely to amount to more than $900 million. Other Iraqi debts to the Egyptian government and private companies from the 1990 war need to be settled as well. Nevertheless, signs are positive ahead of Sharaf's expected visit to Iraq. Sharaf is scheduled to visit Iraq by the end of the month or in early September. A delegation of businessmen and corporate officials is expected to accompany Sharaf with the goal of opening new fields of cooperation on the economic level. Abawi also met Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr, discussing Egyptian-Iraqi bilateral relations and preparations for the upcoming Joint Supreme Committee meeting due to be held next month. They also discussed the remittances issue and other debts due Egypt from Iraq. Abawi said in a press statement that the meeting was positive, explaining that it covered the situation in the region and the importance of coordinating the Egyptian-Iraqi stance towards developments in the Arab world. Amr said that resolving the issue of debts owed to Egypt would boost economic relations between the two countries and encourage the Egyptian companies and manpower to return to Iraqi markets. Al-Borai said that the money would be deposited in four named banks so beneficiaries could receive the money. The ministry has already prepared a list of beneficiaries. In a separate development, Amr announced that Foreign Ministry contacts with Libyan officials during recent weeks resulted in the release of 33 Egyptians early this month. Libyan authorities handed the 33 Egyptians over to the Egyptian embassy in Tripoli. The embassy is currently preparing their required travel documents before transporting them by land to the Tunisian border city of Jerba. From there they would fly home.
