Kuwait and Iraq have agreed to exchange diplomatic missions, Iraqi Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Hamid al-Bayati said Thursday.

Bayati made the remarks before departure after his visit to Kuwait, the official Kuwait News Agency reported. He was quoted as saying the two countries will exchange missions after related protocols are completed between the two sides.

Naming an Iraqi ambassador to Kuwait is still under deliberation, Bayati added.

On his visit to Kuwait, the Iraqi official said he had acquainted Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed al-Sabah with the results of Cairo's preparatory meeting for the coming Brussels conference on Iraq.

The conference, due to be held on June 21-22, will group representatives from Iraq, the United States, Russia, the European Union and Japan to discuss reconstruction and developments in the post-war Iraq.

Bayati, meanwhile, noted that the date of trial of ousted Iraqi president Saddam Hussein would be set by the court, adding that the trial would be held according to international standards as international monitors would be allowed to attend.

As to reports of increased Iranian influence within Iraq, Bayati said the Iraqi government is not against the interests of neighboring states, but against political and military interference in its affairs.

Bayati also expressed hope that Iraqi debts be reduced or written off, reasoning that the money was borrowed under the former regime and the Iraqi people have no hand in it.

(Xinhua News Agency June 10, 2005)