Talks begin between UN and Iraq on securing return of Kuwaiti property

A United Nations official today began talks with the Iraqi authorities in Baghdad aimed at securing the return of Kuwaiti property which has been missing since Iraq's 1990 invasion and subsequent occupation of its southern neighbour.

According to a UN spokesperson in New York, UN Team Leader Richard Foran is scheduled to hold more discussions tomorrow with the Iraqi officials, after which he will head to Kuwait to meet with the authorities there.

These contacts come as a result of Secretary-General Kofi Annan's meeting with Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri last month in Vienna, where Iraq agreed to the return of Kuwaiti national archives and other documents.

As part of the effort, the UN has agreed to re-establish the mechanism that existed between 1991 and 1996 for the transfer of this material.