Blair Says Saddam must be Stopped

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, September 24, 2002

Blair Says Saddam must be Stopped

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British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Monday told his cabinet ministers that there was "no doubt" Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had an ongoing program to build weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and that must be stopped.

Blair also told the ministers that the policy of "containing" Saddam Hussein has failed as he held talks with his cabinet ahead of Tuesday's emergency recall of Parliament, Downing Street said.

In the two-hour cabinet session, the prime minister briefed the ministers about the dossier of evidence against Iraq which will be unveiled on Tuesday morning.

Blair said the government's 55-page dossier on Iraq would show the "real and serious problem" of its weapons programs had got worse since UN inspectors left the country in 1998.

"There is no doubt whatever...that Saddam is continuing with his WMD program. We are not talking about historic leftovers but an ongoing, continuing program," Blair was quoted as saying.

The dossier will "nail the lie that they (Iraq) have no weapons of mass destruction," a Downing Street spokesman said.

"The prime minister said the issue of Iraq and weapons of mass destruction is real, serious and the problem has grown worse in four years without inspections," said the spokesman.

But he added that plans for a war with Iraq were not being discussed in the cabinet meeting.

Blair also told his colleagues that it was right to deal with Baghdad through the auspices of the United Nations but added that inaction was not an option.

Before the cabinet meeting, some ministers have publicly expressed concern about possible military action.

But Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the cabinet was clear about the need to be "resolute and firm" on dealing with Iraq.

In seeking a "peaceful resolution" of the threat posed by Iraq, the international community had to give Saddam Hussein a "clear choice", Straw told reporters after the cabinet meeting.

Iraq should know the consequences of failing to disarm, he added.

Also on Monday, Downing Street said a draft United Nations resolution will be tabled "within days" to set out what Iraq needs to do to comply with international weapons inspections.

Blair's official spokesman said Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to exploit diplomatic maneuvering within the UN to block the demands to disarm.

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