9.1  |  March to 22 May 2003

156.  Cabinet met at 1000 on 10 April.80 Its discussion of the military campaign is

described in Section 8.

157.  Mr Straw reported that in discussions at Hillsborough President Bush had “taken

a forward position on … the vital role of the United Nations in post-conflict Iraq”.

158.  Ms Short told Cabinet that “world opinion was divided over Iraq and the vindication

of our action would be the new Iraq which emerged”. She reported that the International

Committee of the Red Cross was doing an excellent humanitarian job, but was worried

about lawlessness and violence in Baghdad.

159.  In relation to political reconstruction, Mr Straw said that “the process of arriving at

representative government had to be respectable and legitimate. President Bush was

clear that exile figures were not to be parachuted in.”

160.  Summing up the discussion, Mr Blair said that “joint commissions would operate

from the bottom up to allow new Iraqi leadership to come forward”. The proposed Iraqi

conference was to generate discussion, after which “we would then work towards

establishing an Iraqi interim authority”. He reported that Mr Annan was keen for the UN

and the Coalition to “achieve a solution in which neither side predominated”.

161.  Concluding the discussion, Mr Blair said that the military campaign in Iraq was

going extremely well, but there were challenges ahead on the humanitarian front,

in dealing with post-conflict arrangements and bringing together the international

community in the UN Security Council. Mr Blair reiterated his conclusion at the previous

meeting of Cabinet that making the lives of ordinary Iraqis better was key to success.

162.  Later on 10 April, the Ad Hoc Ministerial Group on Iraq Rehabilitation (AHMGIR)

met for the first time, with Mr Straw as Chair.81 The decision to create the AHMGIR is

addressed in Section 2.

163.  Ms Short, Lord Goldsmith, Mr Hoon and Ms Patricia Hewitt, Trade and Industry

Secretary, attended, along with senior officials from their own departments, No.10 and

the Treasury.

164.  Mr Straw briefed the meeting that:

“The prospects for further UN Security Council resolutions were uncertain and

negotiations were very likely to take weeks.”

165.  Lord Goldsmith said that he was content for ORHA to undertake humanitarian,

security and public order duties and to restore civilian administration but “it must be

careful not to impose reform and restructuring without further legal authority”. US and

UK lawyers would try to agree an MOU to define how the UK would be consulted.

80  Cabinet Conclusions, 10 April 2003.

81  Minutes, 10 April 2003, Ad Hoc Group on Iraq Rehabilitation meeting.

157