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INDIA AND IRAQ SET UP JOINT WORKING GROUP ON COMMUNICATIONS
NEW DELHI OFFERS IRAQ HELP IN MANUFACTURING CONSULTANCY AND R&D IN TELECOM SECTOR
New Delhi ~ July 5, 2001
An Iraqi delegation led by the Minister of Transport and Communications Dr.Ahmad Al Khalil called on the Minister of Communications Shri Ram Vilas Paswan here today. During the talks Shri Paswan referred to the historical and traditional ties between the two countries and expressed concern at the enormous human suffering and hardship caused by sanctions against Iraq. He reiterated India's support to Iraq for its independence sovereignty and territorial integrity. He said that India has consistently advocated lifting of the UN sanctions against Iraq through articulations in UN and various other fora. Indicating that India would like to further strengthen its ties with Iraq Shri Paswan suggested for cooperation in the Training manufacturing consultancy and R&D sectors. He said that India has an excellent network of training centers having 43 training centers spread across the country.
He said "The Advance Level Telecom Training Center (ALTTC) is a world-class training institution equipped with the most modern training facilities. He also said that with the large pool of technical experts available in the country India can cater to the telecom equipment requirements of Iraq. Shri Paswan also mentioned about the telephone exchanges developed by C-DOT which are rugged and operate in adverse environmental
conditions. He said that India has been very successful in providing consultancy in setting up telecom network in a number of countries. R&D Development could also be taken up jointly", he said.
The Minister of State for Communications Shri Tapan Sikdar said that India has stood by Iraq all the time and will continue to so in the future.
The Iraqi Minister expressed his happiness at the cooperation extended by India and said that his country would look forward to collaborations in the fields in which India has expertise. He specifically appreciated India's political support in the efforts to lift sanctions.
Later both the sides held delegation level talks and decided to form a Joint Working Group on Communications under the overall framework of India-Iraq Joint Commission. The Joint Working Group will consist of representatives of Department of Telecom Department of Posts and Ministry of External Affairs besides representatives from Telecom PSUs and CII and FICCI. Iraqi side will also nominate their representatives for the Working Group.
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