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Korean Firms Eye Investment in Iraq
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The Korea Times - [12/4/2006]
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South Korea is considering lifting a ban on travel to Iraq to allow its companies to advance into the war-torn Middle Eastern nation, government sources said yesterday.
A study will be conducted in Iraq by a special inspection team, made up of officials from the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Construction and Transportation and other related government agencies, before a final decision is made, they said.
``We had an inter-ministerial meeting last month to discuss the issue,،¯،¯ an official said on condition of anonymity. ``We can lift the ban in some areas first and later expand in stages the regions that the companies are allowed to visit.،¯،¯
Seoul has kept its citizens from visiting Iraq for security reasons since 2004, when a worker named Kim Sun-il was kidnapped and murdered by an insurgent group that demanded the withdrawal of South Korean troops.
The ban has been in place for more than two years, but business organizations have urged the government to ease the restriction, saying that South Korean companies might miss out on business opportunities.
Although many areas of the country are still dangerous, the government recently began to allow some companies to make week-long visits to the Kurdish-controlled town of Irbil in northern Iraq, where Korean troops are stationed.
Some officials maintain that security concerns should come before potential business deals, however, even if it means that South Korea, which sent the third-largest number of troops to Iraq after the United States and Britain, misses out on business opportunities there.
About 2,300 South Korean soldiers, mostly non-combatants, have been stationed in Irbil. South Korea plans to halve the number by mid-2007.
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