Technical issues delayed the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the UN and the Iraqi government on renewing the humanitarian program in Iraq, probably until next week, UN sources were quoted as saying late Thursday by Kuwaiti official news agency (KUNA).
The Iraqi representative left the legal office and said he would be back. He did not say when, the source told KUNA. The MoU, which regulates the United Nations humanitarian program in Iraq, is being discussed by the legal office on the UN side. Earlier in the day, Iraqi envoy Mohammed Al Douri said Baghdad accepted the extension of the humanitarian program for five more months, and said it would be ready to resume oil exports.
The extension was voted unanimously by the Security Council last Tuesday after the US and Britain withdrew their "smart sanctions" plan in the face of a Russian veto. They vowed to present it again in five months. For Iraq to export oil, the MOU has to be signed and Iraq has to present a pricing formula every month that the UN oil overseers have to agree to.
Baghdad stopped oil shipments on June 4th in protest of a security council resolution that extended the program's ninth phase for just one month and spelled out the Anglo-American plan which Iraq. Other Arab countries in addition to Russia and China oppose - Albawaba.com
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