By Sue Pleming and Ulf Laessing
KUWAIT (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Malikirebuked neighbouring states on Tuesday for not doing enough tostrengthen ties with Baghdad, write off Iraq's debts or stopmilitants entering the war-torn country.
Maliki, speaking at a meeting in Kuwait of foreignministers from the region and Western powers, did not name anycountries but his remarks appeared aimed at Sunni Arab statesthat have only low-level ties with his Shi'ite-led government.
He said Iraq was now a vastly different country from thatunder former leader Saddam Hussein, who ruled with an iron fistfor decades until his ouster in 2003 by U.S.-led forces.
"Iraq today is different from the previous Iraq whichassaulted its neighbours. Iraq ... is ready to play aconstructive role in security and stability in the region,"Maliki said at the start of the meeting.
He rattled off a list of grievances his government had withneighbouring states.
"It's difficult for us to explain why diplomatic ties havenot been resumed with Iraq. Many other foreign countries havekept diplomatic missions in Baghdad regardless of securityconsiderations," Maliki said.
No ambassador from a Sunni Arab nation has been stationedpermanently in Baghdad since Egypt's envoy was kidnapped andkilled shortly after arriving in 2005. Visits by top officialsfrom Arab states, which have been reluctant to extend fulllegitimacy to Iraq's U.S.-backed government, are also rare.
By comparison, Iraq has growing ties with non-Arab Iran.
Promises have been made by Saudi Arabia and Bahrain to openup embassies in Baghdad and the U.S. hope is that if Riyadhannounces firm plans and dates then others will follow.
The Kuwait meeting is a follow-on from gatherings of Iraq'sneighbours as well as permanent members of the U.N. SecurityCouncil that were held in Turkey and Egypt last year.
Maliki said Iraq had made great strides since then.
RICE SEEKS DEBT RELIEF
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is at themeeting, has said she would push hard for Arab neighbours to"meet their obligations" and step up financial and diplomaticsupport that has not been forthcoming since the 2003 invasion.
About $66.5 billion of Iraq's foreign debt has beenforgiven, according to State Department estimates. Of theestimated $56 billion to $80 billion debt that remains, morethan half is owed to Gulf countries, the department said.
Maliki said Iraq was still waiting for relief of theremaining debts as well as a reduction in compensation it owesbecause of Saddam's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
"The cancelling of debts and the suspension of compensationthat Iraq pays would present a positive message to Iraq'speople that there is a real wish to help them overcome crisesand speed up reconstruction," Maliki said.
Maliki also urged neighbouring countries to make moreeffort to prevent militants crossing into Iraq.
Iraq's recent attempts to crush Shi'ite militias will alsobe a central topic at the meeting and Maliki is expected tourge Arab countries to back those efforts.
A draft of a statement to be issued on Tuesday at themeeting said participants "welcome the Iraqi government'scommitment to disarm and dismantle all militias and illegallyarmed groups, enforcing the rule of law, and ensuring thestate's monopoly on armed forces."
The statement, obtained by Reuters, also urged the"maintaining or opening of diplomatic missions in Iraq".
After several hours of talks with Arab ministers in Bahrainon Monday, Rice got a lukewarm response to her appeal forembassies to open but she told reporters the process was movingforward and Iraq was gaining acceptance in the region.
The two previous meetings of Iraq's neighbours in Egypt andTurkey last year were dominated by tensions between the UnitedStates and Iran, which Washington accuses of stirring upviolence in Iraq. Tehran denies the charges.
At a group photo at the meeting's start, Rice was in thefront row, four places away from Iran's Foreign MinisterManouchehr Mottaki. U.S. officials said they did not interact.
(Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal; Writing by DeanYates in Baghdad, editing by Samia Nakhoul)