The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
335.
A meeting
on 15 March was proposed before the UK withdrew the
draft
resolution
on 17 March. The US would issue a 48-hour ultimatum to
Saddam
Hussein to
leave.
336.
After the
conversation between President Bush and Mr Blair,
Mr Campbell and
Sir David
Manning each spoke to the White House.
337.
Reporting his
conversation with Mr Bartlett, Mr Campbell advised that
the
US would
need to respond quickly with a “we’re going in” message once it was
clear
that the UN
process had collapsed.110
Given the
potential impact on opinion in the
Parliamentary
Labour Party, Mr Campbell asked that the UK should be
consulted about
the
US message.
338.
Mr Campbell
also reported a suggestion for a meeting on neutral territory
on
Saturday
(15 March) to “show continued efforts on the diplomatic front, and
tactically,
to forestall
any French ruse. The plan would be to indicate continued
strategising around
the draft
UNSCR.” That would “fill the void” and “would mean that any UN
talks collapse
would be
delayed to Monday”.
339.
Mr Campbell’s
view was that the perception that Mr Blair and President
Bush
were
“making a ‘last push for peace’ was fine; ‘Council of War’ was less
so”. He feared
it would be
seen as the latter. Dr Rice would discuss the idea with Sir
David Manning.
Ending the
process on 14 March, with a debate in the House of Commons on 15
March,
was also a
possibility.
340.
Sir David
Manning told Dr Rice that publishing the Road Map that
weekend
was
“critical” for the UK; “it had huge symbolic significance in the
Middle East” and in
the
UK.111
“It might
be worth 50 votes to the Government” which “could make all
the
difference”
in the Parliamentary debate.
341.
Sir David and
Dr Rice discussed the UK intention to withdraw its draft
resolution on
Monday, 17
March; “news management would be critical in the next four or five
days”.
342.
Sir David told
Dr Rice that:
“… we could
fill a lot of column inches in the next 36 hours with the activity
at the
UN. Jeremy
Greenstock would be making great play today with our six tests
…
This should
get us through today, and with any luck comment and follow-up
would
carry us
through tomorrow. Friday might be a short day at the UN anyway. But
it
would be
good to publish the Road Map then.”
343.
The US
proposed a meeting. Sir David and Dr Rice also discussed the
timings
of a US
ultimatum to Saddam Hussein to leave, the UK Parliamentary debate
and the
beginning
of military action.
110
Minute
Campbell to Manning, 12 March 2003, ‘Re Dan Bartlett
Call’.
111 Letter
Manning to McDonald, 12 March 2003, ‘Iraq: Conversation with Condi
Rice’.
458