Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro
de la Prensa-Baszn Özeti
UN Ignores Iraq Sanctions Threat
_ ..
Saddam Hussein, who celebrated
his 61st birthday on Tuesday.
But Council Agrees to Reviews Every 60 Days
By Barbara Crossette the Sec1;Jrity CQl1;Dcilmeeting Mo.~y
N~ York 7Jme1 S~rvic~ was. noüceably .different
sessions on the ISSue.
fro.m prevlo.us
Bill Richardson. the U.S. representative,
was somewhat conciliato.ry in his
assessment o.f Iraq's recent perfo.rmance.
UNITED NATIONS, New York -
The Security Council has decided to
extend sanctio.ns against Iraq, ianoring
threats from Baghdad that it wo.uld disf!o1ptfutw'e
~ inspectio.ns if the sanctiens
were not lifted.
"No. member o.f the co.uncil is arguin,
fer the lifting cf sanctio.ns against
Iraq, ' said Sir Jo.hn Weston, Britain's
representative, near the end cf a daylo.ng
debate Mo.nday on the matter.
But in a gesture to the Iraqis, who. have
recently allo.wed greater access to arms
inspectors, the council also decided that
in the future, reviews o.f sanctio.ns wo.uld
take. place every 60 days. That was the
procedure befo.re Iraq instigated a series
o.f crises last year, bringing President
Saddam Hussein and the United States
to the brink o.f war by late January.
But diplomats do no.t expect the next
big push fer lifting er easmg the sanctiens
until October, when the next major
report en Iraqi compliance is due from
the United Natio.ns Special Commissien,
which has been in charge o.f eliminating
Iraq' s weapons o.f mass destructien
and its capacity to make more.
[Iraq's foreign minister called the Security
Council's decision to maintain
sanctio.ns "very disappointing," but said
Tuesday that Baghdad would cooperate
with the United Natio.ns in order to undennine
U.S. efforts to maintain the sanctions,
The Associated Press reported
from Baghdad.
[Despite the pfedge cf cooperatio.n,
Fo.reign Minister Mo.hammed Said Sabhat
took issue with UN interpretatio.ns
o.f an agreement in February to o.pen
presidential palaces to. UN inspectio.ns.
The issue o.f access to the palaces nearly
led to U.S.-led military strikes. But Mr.
Sahbaf said the agreement between Iraq
and Secretary-General Ko.fi Annan
guaranteed "su~uent visits" by inspectors
but net unlimited cnes.
[Mr. Sabhaf said that Baghdad destroyed
all banned weapons in 1991. But
the chief UN inspector, Richard Butler,
said Tuesday that his teams had in recent
weeks feund artillery shells in Iraq
filled with mustard gas.]
The United States has Vo.wed to veto
any lifting o.f the sanctio.ns, imposed in
1990, until Iraq has met a number of
requirements - net o.nly verifiable disarmament
but also the return cf Kuwaiti
prisoners and property seized in the
1990 Iraqi invasio.n and a general improvement
in respecting human rights.
Altho.ugh there was never a cbance
that Iraq wo.uld be freed from sanctio.ns
in this review - the first since the agreement
in February between Mr. Saddam
and Mr. Annan that defused the most
recent crisis - the atmosphere around
Facing eroding support fer unlimited
sanctions, Mr. Richardso.n ackno.wledged
seme Iraqi progress in disarmament,
including meeting mo.st demands
o.f nuclear inspecto.rs fro.m the
Internatio.nal Atomic Energy Agency.
But he continues to o.bject to. Russian,
Chinese and French calls to "clo.se the
file" on nuclear weapons and shift fro.m
an active" search and destro.y" phase o.f
disarmament to leng-term mo.mto.ring.
Russia has proposed a fermaI reso.lutio.n
making the change, which the
United States o.pposes.
Shen Guo.fang, China's new deputy
representative to.the United Natio.ns and
a former Fo.reign Ministry spokesman,
argued no.t o.nly fer clo.sing the nuclear
weapons file new but alSo.fer mo.ving to.
end sanctio.ns generally "because the
Iraqi people are suffering a let. "
But he ackno.wledged that Iraq still
had requirements to. meet.
The council heard Mo.nday fro.m Mr.
Butler, who.se commissio.n is in charge
cf eliminating Iraq's bio.lo.gical, chemical
and missile pro.grams, and Garry
Dillen, leader o.f the Internatio.nal
A1bmic Energy Agency inspectors.
Mr. Butler has feund no. pro.gress en
outstanding issues in the last six mo.nths
and Mr. Dillen, while mo.re upbeat, still
has some unanswered questio.ns.
The United States, increasingly iso.-
lated amo.ng co.uncil members who. say
that eight years o.f sanctio.ns are eno.ugh,.
gets its strongest support fro.m Britain,
who.se diplo.mats cautio.n against shift-,
ing the debate fro.m Iraqi co.mpliance to.
Iraqi suffering.
-Iraqis Fete Saddam'8 Birthday
Iraqi media trumpeted President Saddam's
6lst birthday Tuesday, heurs after
the go.vernment failed in its unusually
strong bid to win relief en sanctio.ns fro.m
the Security Co.uncil, The Associated
Press reported from Baghdad.
Entire newspaper editio.ns were devo.ted
to stories about Mr. Saddam, with
cne headline in a go.vernment-co.ntro.lled
daily boasting that 22 millio.n candles
had been lit "with jo.yo.n the belo.ved
president's birthday." That wo.uld be
o.ne for each o.fIraq's citizens .
. A song broadcast en televisio.n referred
to the president's tireless sparring
with the United States, saying "Saddam,
yo.ur name has shaken America."
The festivities, weeks in preparatio.n,
focused en Mr. Saddam's ho.meto.wn o.f
Tikrit, 160 kilo.meters (100 miles) no.rth
o.f Baghdad, where a parade was held.
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