The Report of the Iraq Inquiry

pressure on Iraq and to begin to build a legal base for possible military

action; and

• whether the May resolution giving effect to the Goods Review List (GRL)

agreed in November 2001 (resolution 1382) might “repeat in stronger terms

the Council’s demands for the unconditional return of the inspectors”.11

34. Mr Gray advised that he did “not think there was any prospect in foreseeable

circumstances” of getting a resolution “explicitly authorising military action”; and it was

“conceivable” that this might lead to “severe pressure, to the point of facing a draft

resolution forcing us to back away from this option altogether”.

35. Mr Gray also advised:

• Officials were “strongly inclined not to jeopardise” the GRL resolution “by

attempting to include military action language in its implementing resolution”.

• The prospects for inserting language into the resolution “rolling over the

Oil‑for‑Food programme” at the end of May “might be better”, but UK actions

on Iraq were “now subject to minute scrutiny in the Council”. Russia and Syria

would “quickly detect language which smacked of easing the justification for

military action”.

• It might be possible to insert a demand for the return of inspectors into the

Oil-for-Food resolution but success would depend on the demands of other

members. If the talks between Mr Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary-General, and

Iraq made progress, the UK might seek a separate resolution calling for the

return of inspectors; but the difficulties involved would be “considerable”.

36. Sir Jeremy Greenstock, the UK Permanent Representative to the UN in New York,

told the Inquiry:

“Towards the end of 2001, the Russians signalled to us that they might be more

amenable to a smart sanctions regime … in February or so of 2002, the US …

Secretary [of State] Colin Powell went serious on getting the smart sanctions regime

and there was a series of bilateral negotiations between Washington and Moscow

which was out of sight of the Security Council … The UK had no part in those

negotiations.”12

37. Cabinet was informed on 9 May that a revised system of sanctions was likely to be

adopted by the UN.13

38. The Security Council adopted resolution 1409 on Iraq on 14 May. It introduced

a new sanctions regime, with a revised GRL and new procedures for applications for

licences to trade with Iraq, with effect from 30 May. Trade in commodities or products,

11 Minute Gray to Goulty and PS [FCO], 11 April 2002, ‘Iraq: UN’.

12 Public hearing, 27 November 2009, pages 19-20.

13 Cabinet Conclusions, 9 May 2002.

10