UN starts talks with Kuwait on return of archives from Iraq

The United Nations official who is leading the UN team dealing with the return of Kuwaiti archives from Iraq met with senior Kuwaiti representatives today to discuss the matter.

Richard Foran, who arrived in Kuwait over the weekend, met today with Foreign Minister Sheik Mohamed al-Sabah. According to a UN spokesman, Mr. Foran is scheduled to remain in the region for the next few days.

Last Wednesday, Mr. Foran spoke with the authorities in Baghdad concerning the return of Kuwaiti property that has been missing since Iraq's 1990 invasion and subsequent occupation of its southern neighbour.

Meanwhile, the Security Council has scheduled closed consultations on Wednesday to discuss Secretary-General Kofi Annan's latest report on the repatriation or return of all Kuwaiti and third-country nationals from Iraq, which is slated for release on Tuesday. The High-level Coordinator for Iraq, Yuli Vorontsov, is expected to provide the briefing for the Council, the spokesman said.