Russia's position concerning US anti-Iraqi operation remains unchanged

Russia's official position concerning a possible US operation against Iraq has remained unchanged - "this sort of issues shall be settled in due course in compliance with a relevant UN Security Council Resolution," the Kremlin administration stated.

The Kremlin also commented on the recent mass media reports about a Russo-Iraqi cooperation programme. "This is an old project, which shall not be considered a new trend," the Kremlin officials added. "Our Iraqi partners decided to resurrect the programme when the skies started getting dark over the country," the Kremlin explained. The programme basically dwells on joint development of oil deposits and does not include any specific contracts, the Kremlin administration stressed.