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Friday, September 20, 2002 - Web posted at 9:35:44 GMT Bush to court Russia as he seeks UN vote on Iraq WASHINGTON, Sept 20 (AFP) - US President George W. Bush will try Friday to secure Russia's cooperation as he seeks a UN vote and a US congressional resolution authorizing military action against Iraq. |
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The president will grant a White House audience to both Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov one day after he urged Congress to give him the green light to use any means, including force, to disarm and oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein if the United Nations will not. "The United Nations Security Council must show backbone, must step up and hold this regime to account. Otherwise, the United States and some of our friends will do so," the US president said. Russian support would be key to having the Security Council acquiesce to Bush's request because Moscow wields veto power there. But Defense Minister Ivanov made clear Thursday Moscow was not eager to jump on the war bandwagon and was determined to allow weapons inspections to resume and run their course. Asked whether he believed Baghdad would give the United Nations unfettered access to its suspected weapons facilities, Ivanov said: "Well, I think the inspectors should give that answer. It's not a question of trust or mistrust. It's a question of facts." Washington accuses Iraq of developing nuclear, chemical and biological arms. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers said they hoped to vote on a resolution authorizing use of force in early October, before Congress breaks to campaign for the November 5 midterm elections. Bush aides said the maneuver would step up pressure for UN action amid hesitation from key members Russia and France after Saddam's surprise offer Monday to readmit UN arms inspectors barred from returning to Iraq since they left the country in 1998 ahead of US-British air strikes. But some Democrats expressed concern late Thursday that a draft resolution authorizing Bush to act against Iraq amounted to a blank check that they could not support. They said, however, that they were willing to work with the White House on the wording of the resolution allowing Bush to do whatever it takes to disarm or oust Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. The resolution would grant the president authority "to use all means that he determines to be appropriate, including force, in order to enforce the United Nations Security Council Resolutions." It concludes by allowing the president to "defend the national security interests of the United States against the threat posed by Iraq, and restore the international peace and security in the region." Many lawmakers leaving a two-hour meeting of Senate Democrats had concerns over the sweeping nature of the last six words in the draft. "I don't think people want to sign a blank check," said Senator Patrick Leahy. "It appears to actually authorize the president to do virtually anything anywhere in the Middle East," said Senator Russ Feingold. "To endorse such language would be irresponsible." Democrats were to start working toward forming a consensus, with a vote expected to be held on the Senate floor by the first week in October, Senate Majority Leader Democrat Tom Daschle and Senate Minority Leader Republican Trent Lott agreed. Lott said he was happy with the language of the resolution. "It said what I think needed to be said," he said, including implying a go-ahead to oust Saddam. The two-page US draft comprises a litany of Washington's accusations that Saddam has flouted UN resolutions on issues including disarmament and human rights that he agreed to follow after the 1991 Gulf War. To justify unilateral, preemptive US action, it cites the "extreme magnitude of harm" Iraq could inflict on the United States in a surprise attack with weapons of mass destruction or by handing such arms to global terrorists who target US sites. "The President is authorized to use all means that he determines to be appropriate, including force, in order to enforce the United Nations Security Council Resolutions referenced above, defend the national security interests of the United States against the threat posed by Iraq, and restore international peace and security in the region," the proposed resolution concludes. Top White House officials insisted the president has not yet decided to abandon efforts to craft a tough UN Security Council resolution but that he needs maximum flexibility in deciding how to confront Iraq. "If you want to keep the peace, you've got to have the authorization to use force," Bush said during an Oval Office meeting with top aides including US Secretary of State Colin Powell and Vice President Dick Cheney. The draft, which the White House made public, approvingly cited a 1998 resolution that called on Washington "to remove from power the current Iraqi regime and promote the emergence of a democratic government." Meanwhile, Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri read a message from Saddam to the United Nations aimed at further eroding support for action against his government, accusing Washington of manufacturing pretexts to attack. "I hereby declare before you that Iraq is clear of all nuclear, chemical and biological weapons," Saddam said through Sabri. "Iraq was, and is still, ready to cooperate with the Security Council." Minutes after he spoke, Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer charged the speech "was a disappointing failure in every respect. The speech is an attempt to lure the world down the same dead-end road that the world has traveled before." Bush said he had not heard the speech, but scoffed: "Let me guess: the United States is guilty, the world doesn't understand, we don't have any weapons of mass destruction. It's the same old song and dance." ok-mb/mk/gk Nampa-AFP WEB story ENDS (NAMPA 200712) |
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