| Press Statement Richard Boucher, Spokesman Washington, DC July 19, 2002 Mauritania Reaches Milestone for Debt ReliefThe United States welcomes the decision of representatives of the Paris Club creditor countries on July 8, 2002, to recommend that their governments reduce Mauritania's stock of debt by $188 million within the framework of the Enhanced Debt Initiative for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (Enhanced HIPC Initiative). The United States is a member of the Paris Club and will now forgive all of Mauritania's official bilateral debt to the U.S. Government. Under the Enhanced HIPC Initiative, bilateral and multilateral creditors commit to substantially reduce the debt stock and debt service payments of eligible countries such as Mauritania. In return, debtor nations pledge to implement rigorous economic reforms that provide for economic growth and poverty reduction. Mauritania reached its milestone, called a "completion point," of economic reform on June 18, 2002. Mauritania is the sixth nation under this debt initiative to have reached its completion point. The United States played an important role in launching the Enhanced Debt Initiative in 1999 at the G-7 Summit in Cologne, Germany. This initiative, which ties debt relief to economic reform and poverty relief, is an important element in our strategy of promoting sustainable development. |
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