The Chinese Ambassador to Iraq, Cui Wei, revealed the reduction of entry procedures to China and the granting of entry visas to Iraqi citizens and businessmen, while announcing an increase in the volume of trade exchange with Iraq for the current year, stressing that the development road project is fully consistent with the Belt and Road Initiative.
The Chinese ambassador said, in a press statement to a number of media outlets, including the National Iraqi News Agency / NINA / today, Wednesday, in Baghdad, that “the framework agreement between Iraq and China entered into force about two years ago and is beneficial to both countries, as we have witnessed fruitful cooperation from the Iraqi government, which is working to benefit from its resources, and we provide the required advice.”
He added, “The file of building 1,000 schools will be completely completed by the end of this year, as the schools that have actually been completed have been delivered according to the framework agreement, and by the end of t
his year, more than 600 schools will be delivered.”
He continued, “The development road project is an important joint for the development and advancement of the country’s capabilities, because Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani informed us that the development road will not be limited to transporting goods and commodities, but will include a set of integrated projects and infrastructure, and therefore the development road and the Belt and Road Initiative are completely identical, and there is no difference between them.”
Regarding joint cooperation in the field of armament and military industries, the Chinese ambassador explained, “We intend to provide support to Iraq in the armament sector and the development of military capabilities, because cooperation in the military aspect is new between the two countries.”
Regarding the projects implemented by Chinese companies inside Iraq, the ambassador confirmed that “Chinese companies are working at Nasiriyah International Airport, the heavy water corridors p
roject at Faw Port, and the Eagles Square bridges project in the capital, Baghdad, as well as two power stations being worked on in Iraq,” noting that “the number of Chinese workers in Iraq is very large, most of them are technicians and not just workers.”
Regarding the volume of trade exchange between the two countries, he explained, “The volume of trade exchange between Iraq and China last year amounted to 49.7 billion US dollars, but during the first half of this year it amounted to 27 billion US dollars, and China is the largest importer of Iraqi oil, and Iraq is the third largest country exporting oil to China.”
He added, “China exported 20,000 cars to Iraq during the past year 2023, while during the past 6 months of the current year the number reached 23,000 modern cars.”
Regarding the procedures for granting entry visas, the Chinese ambassador explained that “during this year we granted many facilities in entry visas to all citizens wishing to study and receive treatment, and they are not limited to
diplomats and businessmen only, and we directed all our consulates in the governorates to provide facilities for those wishing to obtain entry visas to China.”
He added, “Our consulate in Erbil grants entry visas in a smooth manner to citizens, while our consulate in Basra was recently opened and will also contribute to facilitating the procedures.”
Regarding the suspension of dealing with the yuan, the Chinese ambassador confirmed that “the Central Bank of Iraq has temporarily suspended dealing with many currencies, not just the yuan, due to the procedures of the US Federal Reserve, but they are temporary procedures and we continue to work on addressing them with the relevant authorities.
Source: National Iraqi News Agency
