Posted on 12/18/2004 2:58:13 PM PST by soccer_linux_mozilla
The United States is forgiving 100 percent of the $4.1 billion Iraq owes it, the Treasury Department said in a statement.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
I thought that the "OIL" was supposed to cover that! Fooled me again!
Well, it's only money. We can always print more. Grrrrr!
We only own a small fraction of the Iraqi debt and we want other countries to cancel their much larger amounts. We have to lead on this issue. This is a good decision.
Fri Dec 17, 2004 12:28 PM ETWASHINGTON, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The United States will try to convince more of Iraq's creditors to forgive the country's debt, Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Friday.Snow called a debt reduction deal between the Paris Club of creditor nations and Iraq a good first step, but said more needed to be done to foster economic development in Iraq. Snow signed the U.S. portion of the agreement at a ceremony at the State Department.
"The U.S. is therefore ready to assist the Iraqis in implementing the Paris Club agreement, including seeking comparable treatment from sovereign creditors who do not participate in the Paris Club," he said in text prepared for delivery.
The Paris Club agreed last month to cancel 80 percent of the debt Iraq owes its members.
The agreement, which will slash Baghdad's debt to Club creditors to $7.8 billion from $38.9 billion, would be put into effect in three steps over the next four years.
The Paris Club's 19 members include the Group of Seven industrialized countries -- the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, Britain, France and Italy -- as well as other Western European states, Russia and Australia.
Other creditors who are not in the Paris Club but could follow its lead include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Eastern European states.
Under the deal, the Paris Club nations will immediately cancel 30 percent of the debt owed to them by Iraq.
An additional 30 percent waiver would follow in 2005 once an economic program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is approved. A further 20 percent would be pardoned in 2008 after a review of the implementation of the IMF economic program.
The United States is forgiving 100 percent of the $4.1 billion Iraq owes it, the Treasury Department said in a statement.
This country is filled with a bunch of non-caring assholes.
Could someone please cancel my debt.
Doesn't congress have to approve this expenditure?
It's about the lives of American Soldiers and Marines. The reason you do things [which Freepers are very insensitive to] is to lesson the hate towards the United States -- you do not want to fan ideas of hatred towards the United States.
When Freepers post very negative things [racial name calling of Iraqi's], they help the enemy of our soldiers and marines by fueling the hate mechanism and giving these folks a reason for a jihad.
The terrorists are one problem -- calling the Iraqi people names only aids the terrorists.
After the Gulf War, both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait wanted to help the US and did at times. This may also be true of Iraq -- that one day they will show their grattitude to the US at a critical time.
And just because a debt is forgiven, it does not mean at some point in the future that Iraq may pay it.
Finally, with the oil for food scandal, the US has every right to seize assets of those engages in that scandal to recover part of the $4.1 billion dollars -- which includes -- as far as I am concerned -- throwing the head of the UN in jail, as well as his son, and seizing related assets.
Cancel my debt, you jackass.
Yes, I was thinking of printing some up this morning. What's good for the goose should be good for .....
I suppose the US National Debt just increased by another $4 Billion.
In FY04 the U. S. Government spent $322 Billion of your money on interest payments* to the holders of the National Debt. Compare that to NASA at $15 Billion, Education at $61 Billion, and Department of Transportation at $56 Billion.
Will someone go back and look at how much "debt" we cancelled for Israel in the last 56 years?
I'm an American first-er. You'd think they'd wipe my debts first.? hmmmnn? Maybe I should rethink things....
If you think that forgiving the 4.1 Billion dollar debt is going to make the terrorists like us I've got a bridge over the East River that might just suit you and the price is right.
?
It would most likely cost us even more if we didn't forgive it.
You have debt?
Well, talk about the pot calling the kettle black!
It may not do that but I can rest assured that a good portion of it will go to the spending of defense and training for the Iraqi's so they can fend for themselves.
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