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The Report of the Iraq Inquiry
241.  The Note concluded that any proposal would need to be tailored in a way that
could secure UN endorsement.
242.  In preparation for the 8 April meeting between President Bush and Mr Blair at
Hillsborough, Mr Rycroft chaired talks between US and UK officials on 4 April.126
243.  The IPU provided Mr Rycroft with an annotated version of the agenda for the talks
and a commentary on the latest US draft resolution on 3 April.127
244.  The commentary described the UK’s problems with the US draft, including that
it specified that Iraqi oil revenues would be spent at the direction of the Coalition.
That would be unacceptable to the Security Council.
245.  The annotated agenda set out the UK position on that issue:
“We believe that, like the wider political process, this management [of oil revenues]
has to be legitimised by the UN; and that it will only be acceptable to the UNSC
[Security Council] if it involves some form of effective international oversight –
about whose details we do not as yet have a firm view – until a representative Iraqi
Government is ready to take over.”
246.  The annotated agenda also stated that:
“Any decisions concerning the management of Iraq’s oil reserves should be taken
either by the UN or by the new Iraqi institutions. The Coalition’s effort should focus
on rehabilitating Iraq’s existing infrastructure …”
247.  Mr Brenton reported by telegram on 4 April, to clarify US views on post-conflict
Iraq.128 While discussions had been “disproportionately dominated by hard-line DoD
positions”, the reality was that “NSC rule” and it was close to the UK position on most
of the post-conflict agenda. There was considerable common ground between the US
(including DoD) and the UK, including on the need for oil revenues to be “in the hands of
the Iraqis, with international oversight, and spent by the Coalition only for tasks agreed
by the UNSCR [resolution]”.
248.  Mr Nicholas Cannon, Mr Blair’s Assistant Private Secretary for Foreign Affairs,
wrote to Mr Simon McDonald, Principal Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary, on
4 April, reporting the talks between US and UK officials.129
249.  Mr Cannon reported that the US delegation had proposed that the bulk of Iraqi
oil revenues should go into a fund under Coalition supervision, “if necessary with a
126 Minute Rycroft to Blair, 4 April 2003, ‘Future of Iraq’.
127 Letter Chilcott to Rycroft, 3 April 2003, ‘Iraq: Phase IV: Meeting with US Officials’ attaching Paper IPU,
[undated], ‘Comments on US Draft Post Conflict Iraq Resolution’.
128 Telegram 448 Washington to FCO London, 4 April 2003, ‘Iraq: Post Conflict’.
129 Letter Cannon to McDonald, 4 April 2003, ‘Iraq, Post-Conflict Administration: US/UK Talks,
4 March [sic]’.
410
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