CRI听力：UN: New Hope for Iraq to Rebuild

A United Nations conference on Iraq concluded Thursday with the adoption of a declaration, encouraging creditors to consider resolving outstanding debts to the war-torn nation.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said there was new hope for the Iraqi people to rebuild their country.

"The Stockholm Declaration contains all the commitments and expectations of the international community to see Iraq overcoming the current challenges. This requires the efforts not only from the international community, but also from the people and government of Iraq."(Www.hxen.net)

The official also called for reconciliation among the country's Sunni Arabs, Shiites and Kurds.

More than 500 delegates from dozens of countries and international organisations attended the conference outside Stockholm, including U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki.

The conference came as the US military said violence in Iraq is at its lowest level in more than four years, following a series of crackdowns on Sunni and Shiite extremists.

Iraq has at least 67 billion US dollars in foreign debt - most incurred during the rule of Saddam Hussein and owed to fellow Arab countries Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.