New York Times
March 3, 1998
The Security Council tonight unanimously endorsed Secretary General Kofi Annan's agreement with Iraq on weapons inspections, but without authorizing an automatic military response if Baghdad fails to comply.
A majority of Security Council members - led by China, France and Russia - rebuffed the United States by holding out against any explicit threat, particularly wording that would appear to give a green light to an American attack in the event Iraq violates the agreement.
The United States and its closest ally, Britain, battled to win even the threat of "severest consequences" in the resolution, which is intended to hold President Saddam Hussein to his promise to open all Iraqi sites to international arms inspectors.
After the vote, President Clinton, repeated that threat, warning Iraq against blocking the inspectors from carrying out their work. "Tonight's unanimous vote by the, United Nations Security Council sends the clearest possible message: Iraq must make good on its commitment to give the international weapons inspectors immediate, unconditional and unrestricted access to any suspect site, any place, any time" Mr. Clinton said in a statement read by a White House spokeswoman. "All of the members of the Council agree that failure to do so will result in the severest consequences for Iraq."
Bill Richardson, the United States representative here, brushed aside questions about why the Clinton Administration was not able to win Council support for military action, which Administration officials were confident last week that they would get. He put a positive spin on the result, saying it did not bar military strikes, which the United States believes it already has the power to carry out. "This resolution reinforces the U.S. policy, President Clinton's policy, of diplomacy backed by force," he said. "It does not restrict the US of force as a response of an Iraqi violation of the Secretary General's agreement." "We believe very strongly that any of the objectives we sought in the resolution have been attained," he said. "It sends the unmistakable signals to Iraq if there are violations of the Secretary General's agreement, there will be severest consequences. This is a victory for us. This is a clear, strong resolution that we are very pleased with."
In Washington earlier today James P. Rubin, the State Department spokesman, said the final wording of the resolution "is not as relevant as the kind of private discussions that we've had." "We have assurances from key Governments, including those who are on the Security Council, that they would be more supportive of that action if Iraq were to violate this agreement," Mr. Rubin said. "We've made clear that we don't see the need to return to the Security Council if there is a violation."
Today's resolution brings the accord with Iraq firmly back under Security Council auspices, a major intention of the United States and Britain, which did not want Mr. Hussein to assume that he could go on dealing with the Secretary General, bypassing the Council and eroding its authority in the process. Mr. Annan signed the pact with the Iraqi Government on Feb. 23, a day after meeting Mr. Hussein in Baghdad. In their discussions, the Iraqi President agreed that eight previously off-limits "presidential" sites could be inspected under a complicated diplomatic formula whose details are still to be worked out. Mr. Hussein also agreed in broad terms that Iraq would allow other work by the United Nations Special Commission charged with disarming the country to go on unhindered.
The accord was greeted with some skepticism here and in Washington because of Iraq's consistent interference with the work of the inspectors in recent months. Republican leaders in Congress have also criticized the Administration for leaving the negotiations in the hands of the United Nations Secretary General. 'Mr. Annan had planned to go to Washington today or on Tuesday to discuss the agreement with Congressional leaders as well as Administration officials, but he called off the trip at the end of last week because he wanted to stay close to the Security Council as it debated his mission to Baghdad. Some members of his staff were concerned about the negative political atmosphere in Washington, but this was not discussed with Mr. Annan, his spokesman, Fred Eckhard, said today.
Mr. Eckhard denied reports that a failure to schedule a meeting with Trent Lott, the Senate majority leader, was the reason Mr. Annan's trip was postponed. Today Mr. Lott, a Mississippi Republican, publicly rebuked the Secretary General for calling some of the weapons inspectors "cowboys," saying he could sour relations with Congress by using that word. Mr. Annan has not used the term except to reflect complaints the Iraqis made to him about the behavior of arms inspectors, his spokesman said.
Mr. Annan, speaking to the Council today, sought to allay fears that the weapons inspection system would be compromised by his agreement to appoint diplomats to follow inspectors to Iraq's presidential sites. He also added his warning to Baghdad. "With today's Security Council resolution," he said, "the Government of Iraq fully understands that if this effort to insure compliance through negotiation is obstructed by evasion or deception, as were previous efforts, diplomacy may not have a second chance." Iraq did not get any promise in this resolution of an early lifting of sanctions, which it wanted. Until the Special Commission, known as Unscom, can certify that Iraq is free of weapons of mass destruction or the ability to make them, Baghdad cannot hope to see an end to the embargo imposed in August 1990 after the Iraq invasion of Kuwait.
In Baghdad today, Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, who signed the agreement for the Iraqis, attacked the British and Americans again and tried to drive a wedge between them and other Council members in an interview for CNN's "Larry King Live." Mr. Aziz was also critical of Richard Butler, executive chairman of the Special Commission, which is disarming Iraq.
But Mr. Aziz went on to say Iraq would like to have a "constructive, civilized dialogue" with the United States. Some diplomats and United Nations officials believe that since Iran, Iraq's bitter enemy, has begun making overtures to Washington, the Iraqis may be uneasy. But this does not guarantee that Mr. Hussein will not provoke Washington again or weapons inspections if he concludes that the Americans are isolated.
Inspections are still going on every day in Iraq - though not yet at the presidential sites - and United Nations officials and diplomats said today that the unreported day-to-day experiences of the monitors underline the perennial problems caused by the Iraqis. Among other questionable activities, the officials said, the Iraqis often move or add "dual use" equipment - machinery capable of producing military as well as civilian goods - in industrial and other sites in contravention of requirements to report such changes. "The Iraqi regime has a choice," said Sir John Weston, Britain's representative and a co-sponsor with Japan of today's resolution. "If it fulfills its commitments and complies with its obligations under the relevant Security Council resolutions, the way will be open for the lifting of sanctions. There should be a time, to which the beleaguered Iraqi people can look forward, when Iraq is able to return to the respectable company of nations."
