by Christopher S. Wren
New York Times
Febraury 8, 1998
After shuttling 18,000 miles among farflung countries that seldom hit the radar screen of American foreign policy, the chief United States representative to the United Nations came home to report today that a "silent majority" of nations supports Washington's policy on Iraq. "I think there is broader support for a tough stance on Iraq than is being reported," said the representaive, Bill Richardson, who returned to New York on Friday night after a weeklong journey across three continents. "Most countries want to see this resolved diplomatically," Mr. Richrdson said in a telephone interview today, "but they recognize that force has to be on the table." He conceded, however, that many of them did not favor a military strike, and said he had not tried to persuade them.
Mr. Richardson's mission took him to Sweden, Portugal, Gambia, Kenya, Gabon, Brazil and Costa Rica, with a stopover at the World Economic Conference in Davos, Switzerland, to meet Prime Minister Janez Drnovsek of Slovenia and senior officials from other countries, including Japan. The eight countries lobbied by Mr. Richardson are now on the United Nations Security Council, which may soon consider a resolution that would declare Iraq in "material breach" of its pledge to give United Nations weapons inspectors unrestricted acess. Diplomats from several countries have said such a resolution has not yet been discussed in the Council while discussions among capitals are continuing.
Today, Mr. Richardson reiterated the Clinton Administration's contention that it does not need a new resolution to take military action against Iraq because earlier Security Council resolutions justify it. Three of the five permanent Council members - Russia, France and China - have questioned Washington's proposed use of force. Britain, which has pledged to join the United States in any attack on Iraq, is known to believe that a new resolution by the Council would redefine the parameters for taking military action and might offer one. Mr. Richardson said he had the sense that the countries he visited would probably support a new resolution. "I did not go out specifically seeking support for military strikes," he said. "I went out there to seek support for our policy, which is intensive diplomacy backed by military force. Nonetheless, Mr. Richardson was accompanied on his trip by Rear Adm. Edward Hunter, who provided government officials at each stop with detailed briefings about the dangers of the chemical and biological weapons that Iraq developed and may still be hiding.
Mr. Richardson's journey was part of a larger diplomatic offensive by the United States that includes trips abroad by Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright and Defense Secretary William S. Cohen. Mr. Richardson said, "The focus has been on a few countries, but in the silent majority of nations, there is broad support for our goals and our policy." Asked whether any of the countries he visited brought up the unpaid dues that Washington owes the United Nations, he replied, "Yeah, some of them did." He mentioned Sweden and Brazil.
Mr. Richardson also fielded some tough questions at news conferences on several of his stops. In Gambia, a reporter asked how Americans would feel if the United Nations decided to inspect the White House for weapons of mass destruction, "starting first with Bill Clinton's bedroom." Mr. Richardson said in reply, "I'm glad we have a free press here," and explained that the United States was following United Nations resolutions demanding that Iraq open all its sites to inspection. He took note today of other countries' diplomatic efforts. Russia, France and Turkey have put their own envoys in circulation. "Everybody's trying to find a solution," he said, "but Saddam Hussein is not interested in a solution."
