3.6 |
Development of UK strategy and options, November 2002 to January
2003
•
Mr Blair
secured President Bush’s support for a second resolution but did
not
secure
agreement that the inspections process should continue until the
end of
March or
early April. That left little time for the inspections process to
provide
the
evidence that would be needed to achieve international agreement on
the
way ahead.
3.
Iraq
announced on 13 November 2002 that it would comply
with
resolution 1441.
4.
Iraq
challenged US and UK claims, including the UK statement that it
had
decided to
keep possession of its weapons of mass destruction (WMD),
and
restated
its position that it had neither produced nor was in possession
of
weapons of
mass destruction.
5.
Iraq informed
the Security Council of its decision to comply with resolution
1441
(2002),
without conditions, in a letter from Dr Naji Sabri, the Iraqi
Foreign Minister, to
Mr Kofi
Annan, the UN Secretary‑General, on 13 November
2002.1
•
The claims
by President Bush and Mr Blair that “Iraq might have produced,
or
might have
been on the way to producing, nuclear weapons” since 1998
and
that “Iraq
had indeed produced chemical and biological weapons” was “an
utterly
unfounded
fabrication” and “baseless”.
•
Iraq had
agreed to the return of the inspectors, and had “already stated”
that
it had
“neither produced nor possessed any nuclear, chemical or
biological,
weapons of
mass destruction during the absence of the
inspectors”.
•
Iraq would
“deal with resolution 1441, despite its iniquitous contents”. It
was
“ready to
receive the inspectors so that they can perform their duties,
and
ascertain
that Iraq has produced no weapons of mass destruction during
their
absence”.
•
Iraq was
“eager for them to accomplish their task in accordance
with
international
law as soon as possible”. If they did so “in a professional
and
lawful
manner” the (US and UK) “liars” would be “revealed to the public
and the
declared
aim of the Security Council will be achieved”.
•
The
Security Council would be “under obligation” by “the public and the
law
to apply
paragraph 14 of … resolution … 687, by applying it to … (Israel),
and
1
UN Security
Council, 13 November 2002, ‘Letter dated 13 November 2002 from the
Minister for Foreign
Affairs of
Iraq addressed to the Secretary‑General’
(S/2002/1242).
5