German President Johannes Rau calls on the German government to take part in the reconstruction of Iraq, according to the Welt am Sonntag.

Rau, in an interview with the newspaper to be published Sunday, said, "Germany must play a role in the economic rebuilding of Iraq."

"This is a matter of humanitarian assistance and building the basis for a stable democracy," said Rau, who is the highest but a largely symbolic official in Germany.

He said that rebuilding Iraq is in the interests of Germany, although Berlin and Washington have different views on the Iraqi issue.

The German government led by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has opposed the US military action against Iraq and declined to be militarily or financially involved in the post-war Iraq unless under the UN leadership.

(Xinhua News Agency July 27, 2003)