The Report of the Iraq Inquiry

320. The FCO briefing advised that gaining the co-operation of some of Iraq’s

neighbours, and providing a safety net for others, were important steps in making

progress on a new sanctions regime.172

321. During his visit, Mr Straw discussed progress on securing “Smart Sanctions” and

the importance of winning over the front line states.173

322. Sir Peter Ricketts told the Inquiry that he had believed in July 2001 that “a growing

majority on the Security Council” could “see that the current sanctions regime was not

working … and should be replaced”, and that there was momentum behind the policy.174

323. Sir Jeremy Greenstock gave the Inquiry a more pessimistic view:

“The Oil-for-Food regime was … rolled over for six months at the beginning of

July 2001 with no prospect of this stalemate being ended even in the following

six-month period.

“… this was quite a low point in the saga of the Security Council’s activities on Iraq,

since it seemed that there was no way forward on any of the potential tracks.

“The UK concluded from this experience that it was going to be extremely difficult to

end the fundamental stalemate at the Security Council over Iraqi sanctions … with

the failure of the Security Council to reach any form of agreement on Iraq’s future,

we were looking at the prospect of a continued unravelling of the sanctions regime,

of growing confidence in Baghdad that they could outwit the international community

and of a real prospect that, over time, Iraq would be able to reconstitute some of

the programmes which had been destroyed after 1991. In the summer of 2001,

we and the Americans had no clear ideas on how we could successfully get out

of this logjam.”175

324. Russia’s attitude towards Iraq was discussed on 19 July during President Bush’s

visit to the UK. Mr Blair highlighted the need to persuade President Putin to engage

on Iraq.176

325. Mr Blair’s memoir recorded that President Putin had joked that he was

“all in favour” of sanctions “provided we compensated him for the US$8bn that Iraq

owed Russia”.177

172 Briefing FCO, [undated], ‘Secretary of State’s Visit to the United States: 10-11 July 2001 Iraq’.

173 Telegram 793 Washington to FCO London, 12 July 2001, ‘Your Visit to Washington, 10-11 July: Talks

with Colin Powell: Iraq’.

174 Public hearing, 24 November 2009, pages 74-75.

175 Statement, 27 November 2009, pages 3-4.

176 Letter Sawers to Cowper-Coles, 20 July 2001, ‘Prime Minister’s Talks with President Bush, Chequers,

19 July’.

177 Blair T. A Journey. Hutchinson, 2010.

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