The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
In a speech
at King’s College on 5 December, Mr Hoon set out “preliminary
thoughts”
on the
work commissioned by the MOD following the attacks on 11
September.177
Mr Hoon set
out five approaches the Armed Forces might take in countering the
threat
outside the
UK:
•
preventing the
conditions that allowed international terrorist organisations
to
operate,
including peace support operations to prevent instability or to
assist in
stabilisation
of states which did not have the means to exercise control over
their
own
territory;
•
deterring
attacks including:
–
considering “setting out more clearly and repeatedly our views on
holding
to account
regimes which directly support international terrorist groups,
or
condone
their presence within their borders”; and
– looking
“at how we deter the use of chemical, biological and
radiological
weapons as
well as nuclear weapons and, importantly, dissuade those
who
facilitate
the proliferation of such weapons”;
•
coercion of
regimes and states which harboured or supported
international
terrorism
“with the threat and, ultimately, the use of, military force in the
event
that
diplomatic and other means fail”;
•
active
disruption of activities supporting international terrorist groups;
and
•
destroying
terrorist cells “and, perhaps in the last instance, to act
against
regimes
such as the Taliban” which supported and protected
terrorists.
381.
On 6
December, The Washington
Post reported the
text of a letter sent to
President
Bush by Senators McCain, Lieberman, Holmes and Lott, amongst
others,
arguing
that “as we work to clean up Afghanistan and destroy Al Qaida, it
is imperative
that we
plan to eliminate the threat from Iraq”, suggesting that the US
“must directly
confront
Saddam, sooner rather than later”.178
“We cannot
be drawn into the ethnic politics of any particular nation, but
should
find a way
to work with all the opposition in a unified framework. The Iraqi
National
Congress is
the only umbrella organisation comprising all elements of the
Iraqi
opposition.
No one group is excluded, no one group is favoured … All
indications are
that in the
interest of our own national security, Saddam Hussein must be
removed
from
power.”
177
Speech, 5
December 2001.
178
Email Hall
to various, 6 December 2001, ‘Letter to the President on
Iraq’.
376