Russian Energy Company stays on in Iraq

MOSCOW, May 12 (Itar-Tass) - The Russian Interenergo service company will continue work in Iraq at the request of the Iraqi side, Director of the department for international projects of the Russian company Yevgeny Loginov declared on Wednesday.

The company has received a corresponding request from the Iraqi Energy Ministry that promised to tighten security of the company personnel in Iraq, Loginov said.

Around 100 out of 340 personnel working in Iraq have decided to return to Russia, while the rest decided to stay on in Iraq and continue the work, he said. No one has compelled the Russian personnel to stay on in Iraq in the first stage of the evacuation campaign in April, and no one compels any of them to leave Iraq now, Loginov said.

According to reports available, the US companies continue work in Iraq despite the execution of a US citizen who had been taken hostage, Loginov said.

The Russian citizens who want to return to Russia will be evacuated from Baghdad by a charter flight on May 17, Loginov said. Whether a Tupolev-154 or Il-62 will fly to Iraq to take the Russian people back home depends on the number of the Russian citizens determined to go home who are being listed now, Loginov said.

Evacuating the people by land from neighboring Amman is very dangerous because of the tense situation in the country, Loginov said.

From: http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=805581&PageNum=0