Important Step Toward Comprehensive Solution of Iraq Issue

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, September 19, 2002

Important Step Toward Comprehensive Solution of Iraq Issue

Iraqi Foreign Minister September 16 suddenly sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, announcing that the Iraqi government would unconditionally accept the return of UN weapon inspectors to Iraq. This "sensible decision" of the Iraqi government has brought a new turn to the Iraq issue and the 4-year-old UN weapon inspection crisis as well as US imminent threat of force against Iraq, receiving universal appreciation and welcome from the international community.

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At the time when heated debates among various parties on questions concerning Iraq and the UN weapon inspection crisis as well as US threat of force against Iraq were carried out at the current UN General Assembly, Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri Ahmed, in the depth of night on September 16, suddenly sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, announcing that the Iraqi government would unconditionally accept the return of UN weapon inspectors to Iraq.

This "sensible decision" of the Iraqi government has brought a new turn to the Iraq issue and the 4-year-old UN weapon inspection crisis as well as US imminent threat of force against Iraq, receiving universal appreciation and welcome from the international community.

After receiving the letter from Iraq, Kofi Annan published a brief statement, saying that this was good news and the first step taken toward a comprehensive solution of the issue. Commander of the French Armed Forces said that his country resolutely opposed preemptive strikes at Iraq, since Saddam had agreed on the unconditional return of UN weapon inspectors to Iraq, we should believe him. The Arab Union regarded this as a "positive step" which would dispel suspicions about Iraq possibly possessing weapons of mass destruction. Jordan maintains that this decision of Iraq is positive, a positive step taken toward resuming dialogs between Iraq and the United Nations, implementing relevant resolutions of the Security Council and finally realizing cancellation of economic sanctions against Iraq. This step makes it possible to remove the blasting fuse of a potential war crisis in the Gulf region, and free Iraq and even the entire Gulf region from the disaster and ruin of war.

Iraq, the United States and the United Nations each have their respective intentions around the disputes over weapon inspection in Iraq.

In the three rounds of negotiations conducted since the beginning of this year, Iraq's propositions and demands are: first, the inspectors withdrew from Iraq on their own initiative in December 1998 and were not driven out by Iraq. Their withdrawal indicated that they had fulfilled their inspection mission in Iraq and so there was no need for them to return to Iraq. Furthermore, before their withdrawal in 1998, they had arrived at the conclusion on questions regarding Iraq's destruction of ballistic missile and nuclear weapons.

Second, the inspectors could not announce their intention to come or to go as they liked. They could not carry out espionage in Iraq, they should respect Iraq's sovereignty and dignity, inspection could not be without a deadline and a timetable should be formed.

Third, performing UN resolutions is a two-way obligation, it should not be that only Iraq is required to perform, but that the United Nations itself should also implement relevant resolutions, that is, after inspection has ascertained that Iraq has fully implemented the UN resolutions, sanctions against Iraq should be fully lifted, sanctions against Iraq could not be artificially and indefinitely prolonged, inspection should be hooked up with the lifting of sanctions.

Fourth, In order to demonstrate Iraq's sincerity and indicate to the world that Iraq has comprehensively implemented the Security Council resolutions, Iraqi National Assembly has since early August repeatedly invited the US Senate and House of Representatives to send delegations together with weapon inspectors to go to Iraq to conduct inspections of any spots they deem it suspicious.

On the part of the United Nations, it has all along insisted that inspectors must unconditionally return to Iraq and that Iraq cannot raise any pre-conditions. With regard to appraisal of the result of the inspection conducted before 1998, as well as the plan for inspection after the return of inspectors, it should all be made after their return to Iraq, while only the inspection result is the basis for deciding on the cancellation of sanctions.

However, the United States exploits Iraq and UN weapon inspection crisis to make a big fuss. After gaining initial success in the anti-terrorist war in Afghanistan, the United States attempted to expand the counter-terrorist war to Iraq. It took advantage of the weapon inspection crisis to fight against Iraq, overthrow the Saddam Hussein regime, and establish in Iraq a so-called "democratic", "freedom" new political power.

The American unilateralist practice and war policy have aroused serious anxiety and strong opposition from countries in the region. To counter this, George W. Bush, speaking contrary to his usual practice at the General Assembly on September 12, mentioned not a word about military attack on Iraq, instead, he indulged in calling on the international community to defend the dignity and authority of the United Nations, to force Iraq to comprehensively implement related UN resolutions, and he enumerated Iraq's violation of 16 articles of the UN resolutions, at the same time, he demanded the United Nations to pass a new resolution to take stiffer actions against Iraq, so as to search for an "imperial sword" for its future strikes at Iraq.

The practice of Bush passing the "ball" and responsibility to the United Nations has indeed aroused the high attention and different repercussions in the international community. Just as the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that while speaking at the current UN General Assembly, the overwhelming majority of the representatives demanded solving the Iraq issue and the UN weapon inspection crisis through political channel within the scope of the United Nations, and all speakers unanimously demanded that Iraq unconditionally allow the inspectors to return to Iraq.

During the current UN General Assembly, Iraqi Foreign Minister Sabri not only himself actively launched diplomatic offensive, but he also mobilized over 20 foreign ministers of the big family of the Arab Union to lobby a number of countries including the five permanent Security Council members of China, Russia, France, Britain and the United States, striving desperately to promote a political solution of the Iraq issue and the UN weapon inspection crisis, stop the United States from using force against Iraq, and publicize Iraq's propositions and demands.

Reports say that through efforts, Iraq has agreed on UN inspectors' return to Iraq. Under this circumstance, Iraq lost no time to determinedly announce on September 16 its decision to unconditionally allow weapon inspectors to return to Iraq. Just as Iraqi Vice-Prime Minister Tarik Aziz told reporters on September 17 that Iraq's decision had deprived the United States of any excuses to launch war against Iraq.

However, the United States was extremely dissatisfied with Iraq which again kicked the "ball" back to the American side, and it does not comply with nor have mercy on Iraq, it charges Iraq again with playing "stalling tactics", US Secretary of State Colin Powell continues to work in the United Nations and insists on passing a new resolution on Iraq, the practice of the United States has evoked disputes in the Security Council.

At the joint press conference held with his counterpart Colin Powell, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov openly indicated that there is no need now to pass a new resolution on Iraq. Regard this, there will be a round of intense debate at the United Nations in the next few days. An official in charge of UN weapon inspection declared September 18 that he would discuss with the Iraqi side concrete matters concerning the return of inspectors to Iraq, it is expected that the entire inspection will take six months or one year to complete.

It is thus clear from this that Iraq and UN weapon inspection will take a winding path, and now a new important step has been taken. Whether the United States uses the threat of force to force Iraq to submit and to put pressure on the United Nations, or, like "Xiang zhuang performed the sword dance as a cover for his attempt on Liu Bang's life-to act with a hidden motive, continues to insist on the use of force against Iraq remains to be further observed.

The above report, published on Page 3 of People's Daily on September 19, was written by its correspondent Wu Wenbin stationed in Syria

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