OPEC defends call on Iraq to attend next meeting

Chairman of OPEC, Abdallah bin Hamad al-Attiya has defended his call for Iraq to attend the oil producer cartel's next meeting in Vienna on September 24.

"Personally, I believe in the importance of Iraq, which is a member of OPEC, and we should not ignore the signals it is sending regarding attendance at the next meeting," he said.

"I will be in contact with the new Iraqi oil minister, Ibrahim Mohammad Bahr al-Ouloum, to exchange views on the state of the country's oil sector, and I will visit the country shortly," he said, but did not specify a date.

Last Thursday, fellow OPEC member Iran said it did not believe Iraq should attend OPEC meetings before its government has been officially recognised by the United Nations.