Commerce Secretary Gary Locke Co-Chairs U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue at the Commerce Department

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today co-chaired the U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue with Iraq’s Acting Minister of TradeDr. Safa Al-Din Muhammad Al-Safi. Secretary Locke expressed the U.S. government’s commitment to helping Iraq become a strong, stable and democratic country, and to building lasting economic ties between the two countries.

“To attract more U.S. companies to Iraq, we need to work together to expose more U.S. firms to opportunities in Iraq and address obstacles to doing business in Iraq,” Locke said.

“The U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue has an important role to play in helping to develop Iraq’s private sector. Iraq has made tremendous progress in terms of its security and political environment over the past few years. But without economic progress, political and security gains will not last,” he concluded.

Locke thankedthe U.S. and Iraqi sections of the U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue for their participation as well as their dedication to working and assisting Iraq in developing its private sector.