The U.N. Security Council on Friday signaled its readiness to lift sanctions on Iraq by calling on the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) to report on the country's compliance with weapons treaties. "The Security Council underlines its readiness, once the necessary steps have been taken, to review, with a view towards lifting" sanctions, it said in a statement. The trade sanctions were imposed in 1991. Last month, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebar, wrote to the Security Council calling for the action. "Outstanding issues related to disarmament obligations are among the constraints that continue to prevent Iraq from regaining its status as a responsible and active member of the international community and, at the same time, deprive it of the benefits of technological progress and scientific research," Zebari said in the letter. Iraqi Ambassador Hamid Al-Bayati said lifting sanctions has the potential to generate up to $24 billion in trade.
