Paris Club creditors waive half Iraq's remaining debt to members

The Paris Club of creditor nations on Monday canceled half of Iraq's $15.6 billion debt in the final stage of a four-year debt reduction program.

PARIS, December 22 (RIA Novosti) - The Paris Club of creditor nations on Monday canceled half of Iraq's $15.6 billion debt in the final stage of a four-year debt reduction program.

The cancelation of the $7.8 million leaves just 20% - another $7.8 million - of its debt to the club from four years ago.

The Paris Club and Iraq agreed in November 2004 "on a comprehensive debt treatment of public external debt providing a total amount of debt reduction of 80% in three phases."

The creditors agreed to waive about $32 billion of Iraq's debt, dating from the Saddam Hussein era. The country's debt to all nations once stood at $125 billion.

The first two phases came in November 2004 and December 2005, reducing Iraq's debt to Paris Club creditors by 60%.

The remaining third phase granting an additional 20% debt reduction was conditional on the successful completion of the review of a 3-year implementation of arrangements with the IMF.

The Paris Club said Iraq "has made its best efforts to seek comparable treatment from all its other external creditors."