Brussels, 13/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - After a 9th discussion session, on Friday 13 November in Brussels, European Commission and Iraqi negotiators finalised talks leading to a partnership and cooperation agreement between the EU and Iraq. Launched in November 2006, the talks aim to reach a contractual agreement, the first ever reached between the two parties in question. In addition to the setting in place of political dialogue on bilateral, regional and global issues, the agreement provides for improvements to the trading regime between the EU and Iraq, for investment to be given a boost, and for Iraq to be better integrated into the global economy. It also defines a framework allowing cooperation to be continued in a number of sectors. The earlier talks had already allowed consensus to be reached on most chapters, in areas such as the fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the promotion of human rights and energy cooperation. Since 2003, the European Commission has provided a contribution of over €900 million for reconstruction in Iraq, to help its population gain access to basic facilities, strengthen democracy and promote good governance. (E.H./transl.jl)