MOSCOW SEEKS A PROFITABLE OUTCOME WITH IRAQ.
Iraqi Vice President Takha Yassin Ramadan became the
first senior Iraqi official to visit the Russian capital
in more than a decade, the BBC reported on 17 April. His
goal was to push Moscow to step up the Russian campaign
to end the international sanctions regime against
Baghdad, and he used the carrot of possibly greater
Russian access to Iraqi oil should those sanctions be
lifted. The Russian government for its part made it clear
that Moscow hopes for economic benefits from Iraq - not
only access to oil but also the repayment of Baghdad's
debt - and that as a result it will continue to seek an
end to sanctions.
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