US Says There are Problems in Iraq Declaration

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, December 17, 2002

US Says There are Problems in Iraq Declaration

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said Monday that there are problems in Iraq's declaration about its alleged weapons of mass destruction programs.

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US Secretary of State Colin Powell said Monday that there are problems in Iraq's declaration about its alleged weapons of mass destruction programs.

"We've said since the very beginning that we approach it with skepticism, and the information I've received so far is that this skepticism is well founded," Powell said at a press conference held in Washington.

"There are problems with the declaration," he added, without elaborating.

Powell's remarks assumed significance because it was the first, though preliminary, assessment by the Bush administration on the 12,000-page Iraqi dossier since Baghdad submitted it to the United Nations on Dec. 7.

Powell, however, refrained from making a final judgment. "We withhold making a final judgment, a final statement, until we have completed our analysis," he said.

The secretary said that the United States is expected to come up with a formal response to the Iraq declaration later this week after consultations with UN weapons inspectors, the International Atomic Energy Agency and other members of the UN Security Council.

"Statements (about the Iraq declaration) will be forthcoming towards the end of the week," Powell said at the press conference.

Speaking to reporters Monday, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the United States is continuing to review the Iraq declaration in which Baghdad denies having any weapons of mass destruction.

Fleischer also warned Baghdad that this is the last chance for it to come out clean. "I think it was abundantly plain from the will of the United Nations, this was Iraq's last chance to inform the world in an accurate, complete and full way what weapons of mass destruction they possessed," he said.

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