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Abu Dhabi: The UAE on Sunday appointed a new ambassador to Iraq during a visit by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki.
Ibrahim Al Shehi's appointment has been endorsed by the Iraqi government and now awaits a final signature from the UAE president. Al Shehhi is currently the UAE's envoy to India.
The move is considered a step toward easing Baghdad's diplomatic isolation.
No ambassador from any Arab country has been stationed permanently in Baghdad since Egypt's ambassador was kidnapped and killed shortly after arriving in 2005.
The UAE withdrew its top envoy from Iraq in May 2006 after one of its diplomats was kidnapped and held for nearly two weeks by Islamist militants.
'Tough time ahead'
Al Shehi considers himself lucky with the new appointment.
"I was told of the assignment days after Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited Baghdad last month," Al Shehi told Gulf News during a telephone conversation from New Delhi.
Shaikh Abdullah became the first high-ranking official from an Arab country in the Gulf to visit Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion and said Abu Dhabi would soon name an ambassador to Baghdad.
"I consider myself pretty lucky to be nominated UAE's ambassador to Baghdad at this juncture," Al Shehi said.
"I am conscious of the tough task ahead and I consider myself a man of tough tasks. I will work hard to contribute to restoring stability to Iraq."
With inputs from agencies
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