The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
122.
Mr Straw’s
Private Office responded that he agreed with the proposed way
forward
set out in
Mr Patey’s advice, subject to any views which Sir David Manning
might have
and the
need for it to be worked through with senior members of the US
Administration.67
123.
Sir David and
Mr McKane were sent copies of the exchange.
124.
Mr Blair’s
speech to the Labour Party Conference on 2 October
2001
provides a
clear indication of Mr Blair’s thinking and approach,
including:
the need
for the international community to come together to act to
address
terrorism;
the dangers of inaction; and the failure of the Taliban to respond
to
the ultimatum
to surrender Usama Bin Laden and his followers.
125.
Mr Blair
did not mention Iraq in his speech, but many of the points he
made
about
Afghanistan appeared in later speeches about Iraq.
126.
In a speech
addressing the Assembly on Terrorism on 1 October, Mr Annan
stated
that, after
the attacks of 11 September, “no one can dispute the nature of the
terrorist
threat, nor
the need to meet it with a global response”. He added that that
would require:
“… Member
States to live up to their responsibilities under international
law.
They must
deal firmly with the reality of armed groups and other non-State
actors
who refuse
to respect common principles of human dignity.
“It is hard
to imagine how the tragedy of 11 September could have been
worse.
Yet, the
truth is that a single attack involving a nuclear or biological
weapon could
have killed
millions … The greatest danger arises from a non-State group –
or
even an
individual – acquiring and using a nuclear, biological, or chemical
weapon.
Such a
weapon could be delivered without the need for any missile or any
other
sophisticated
delivery system.”68
127.
Mr Blair set
out his vision for the world after the events of 9/11 in his speech
to the
Labour
Party Conference on 2 October 2001:
“It [9/11]
was a tragedy. An act of evil. From this nation, goes our deepest
sympathy
and prayers
for the victims and our profound solidarity with the American
people.
“We were
with you at the first, we will stay with you to the
last.”69
128.
Of the
relatives of those who died, Mr Blair said:
“They don’t
want revenge. They want something better in memory of
their
loved
ones.
67
Minute
Davies to Patey, 24 September 2001, ‘Iraq: Way
Forward’.
68
UN Press
Release, 1 October 2001, Secretary-General,
Addressing Assembly on Terrorism,
Calls for
‘Immediate Far-Reaching Changes’ in UN Response to
Terror.
69
The
Guardian, 2 October
2001, Full text:
Tony Blair’s speech (Parts one and two).
334