Iraq's flag was raised over its new embassy in the Emirati capital on Monday, formally restoring diplomatic ties between the two Gulf states after a decade-long break since the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
The Iraqi charge d'affaires Abdel Razzek Hammudi Ahmad said the embassy would temporarily be housed in an Abu Dhabi hotel. "It's a step toward cooperation between the two countries in all fields," he told AFP.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) reopened its own embassy in Baghdad on April 20, becoming the fourth Gulf Arab monarchy after Bahrain, Oman and Qatar to renew diplomatic representation in the Iraqi capital.
Despite the decade-long freeze, the UAE has remained one of Iraq's top donors of humanitarian aid, and annual trade between the two countries currently tops 400 million dollars.
They are linked by a passenger and cargo ferry, which also stops in Bahrain. The UAE supports lifting UN sanctions in force against Iraq since its August 1990 invasion of Kuwait -- ABU DHABI (AFP)
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