/ 1 January 2002

‘Old man’ Kaunda visits Saddam

Zambia’s former president Kenneth Kaunda is in Iraq to hold talks with that country’s leader Saddam Hussein, a representative said on Wednesday.

Kaunda, who is a personal friend of Hussein, arrived in Iraq early this week and was met by Iraq Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz, said a representative from Kaunda’s office.

”The old man (Kaunda) will discuss with Saddam Hussein issues relating to the current wrangles with the US,” Kaunda’s representative said.

In 1991, Kaunda was the last head of state to visit Iraq before the US-led allied forces launched an attack to drive Iraq from Kuwait. – Sapa-AFP