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1) Russian Permanent Representative: UN Will Lose Its Significance If It Supports US-UK War Against Iraq 2) Russian Security Council: Every Nation In The World Will Suffer Negative Consequences Of War Against Iraq 3) The Hindu: Russia Steps Up Efforts To Avert War 4) Foreign Ministry Condemns Intensified US-UK Bombing, Civilian Deaths, Violation Of International Law 5) Major US Church Leaders Back Russia's Stance On Peaceful Resolution Of Iraq Issue -"Yesterday's bombardment of Basra resulted in deaths of 6 people and 15 wounded civilians." The Russian foreign ministry was of the opinion that "there could be no acceptable justification to casualties among civilians." The Russian foreign ministry stressed that "those actions which contradict the international law are contrary to the efforts undertaken, among others, by the UN Security Council to alleviate tension in the Persian Gulf area and to settle the Iraqi problem through political and diplomatic means." http://en.rian.ru/rian/index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=3077318&startrow=1&date=2003-03-05&do_alert=0 Russian Information Agency (Novosti) March 5, 2003 RUSSIAN PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE: UN WILL LOSE ITS SIGNIFICANCE IF IT SUPPORTS RESOLUTION ON IRAQ NEW YORK, MARCH 5. (FROM RIA NOVOSTI CORRESPONDENT DMITRY KLIMENTOV). - The UN will lose its significance if it supports the resolution with respect to Iraq, which leads to the violation of international law and is not substantiated by facts, believes permanent representative of Russia to the UN Sergei Lavrov. He said this on Tuesday evening during the annual briefing for Russian and foreign journalists conducted in the premises of the Russian mission in New York. According to Lavrov, whose speech devoted to the Russian stand on the settlement of the crisis around Iraq was listened to by an unprecedented number of representatives of Western media - more than 90 journalists, the possibility of a peaceful solution of the Iraqi problem remains. "We believe that UN Security Council Resolution 1441 works, and are convinced that the conclusions made by UNMOVIC head Hans Blix to the effect that since January Baghdad has been more actively cooperating with international inspectors are right," Lavrov stressed. The diplomat also pointed out that "the steps made by Iraq create a potential for the peaceful solution, and this is a key factor, which cannot but be taken into account. ------------------------------------------------------- http://en.rian.ru/rian/index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=3076586&startrow=1&date=2003-03-04&do_alert=0 Russian Information Agency (Novosti) March 4, 2003 SECRETARY OF RUSSIAN SECURITY COUNCIL STATES THAT NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES OF WAR IN IRAQ WILL BE FELT BY EVERY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD MINSK, 4 March. /RIA Novosti correspondent Olga Semenova/. Vladimir Rushailo, Secretary of the Russian Security Council stated on Tuesday to journalists in Minsk, the capital of Belorussia where he arrived to participate in the second meeting of Secretaries of Security Councils of the "Slavonic Four" that, in his opinion, negative consequences of the war in Iraq would be felt by every country of the world. Rushailo reported that one of the pivotal issues at the meeting would be the situations in North Korea where "it remained very complicated" and around Iraq "development of which was directly related to provision of regional and international security." The Secretary of the Russian Security Council stated that "if war was unleashed in Iraq, then its negative consequences would be felt by every country of the world, including European states." Rushailo thinks that "it will happen irrespective of the fact whether anybody supports the use of force by US or advocates resolution of the problem through exclusively political and diplomatic means on the basis of decisions of the UN Security Council." The Secretary of the Russian Security Council considers it necessary for the "Slavonic four" to join efforts to strengthen international security. ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.hinduonnet.com/stories/2003030504151400.htm The Hindu March 5, 2003 Russia steps up efforts to avert war By Vladimir Radyuhin MOSCOW MARCH 4. Russia is mounting efforts to delay, if not avert the war against Iraq, encouraged by the Turkish Parliament's refusal to allow American troops on its territory. The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, today described the Turkish vote as ``the most important development in the past week.'' The decision "may have come as a surprise to somebody, but not to Russia,'' Mr. Putin said in what could be a veiled reference to Russian diplomatic efforts. The Russian Foreign Minister, Igor Ivanov, went to London on Tuesday to persuade the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, not to force a vote on the tough U.S.-British resolution on March 7, when the Security Council meets to debate the first U.N. inspectors' report on Iraq. Ahead of the trip, Mr. Ivanov discussed the crisis with his counterparts in Germany and France, Russia's allies in the anti-war coalition. The Foreign Ministers of the three countries "reiterated their unwavering support for resolving the crisis through politico-diplomatic methods,'' said the Russian Foreign Ministry. If action cannot be prevented, Moscow hopes that growing international opposition to war against Iraq will at least discourage Washington from seeking a Security Council vote on its resolution giving green light to military action. ``We believe that bringing the British-American draft resolution to a vote in the current situation is increasingly unfounded and unjustifiable,'' said the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Yuri Fedotov, describing the draft as ``out of touch with the situation on the ground and the progress in fulfilling the Security Council resolutions on Iraq.'' By persuading Washington to withdraw its war resolution from the Security Council, Moscow would avoid having to use its veto right and thereby save its anti-terror partnership with the U.S. ``The veto power ... is to be used in the most extreme situations. We hope that such an occurrence will not arrive,'' the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister was quoted as saying today. ------------------------------------------------------- http://en.rian.ru/rian/index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=3076538&startrow=11&date=2003-03-04&do_alert=0 Russian Information Agency (Novosti) March 4, 2003 INTENSIFICATION OF MISSILE AND BOMB ATTACKS OF US AND BRITISH AVIATION AGAINST IRAQI INSTALLATIONS SERIOUSLY CONCERNS RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY MOSCOW, 4 March. /RIA Novosti correspondent/. On Tuesday the Department of information and press of the Russian Foreign Ministry informed RIA Novosti that the Russian Foreign Ministry was seriously concerned with further intensification of missile and bomb attacks of US and British aviation against Iraqi installations in the so-called "no-fly" zones in the southern and northern parts of the country. Representatives of the department stated that "yesterday's bombardment of Basra resulted in deaths of 6 people and 15 wounded civilians." The Russian foreign ministry was of the opinion that "there could be no acceptable justification to casualties among civilians." The Russian foreign ministry stressed that "those actions which contradict the international law are contrary to the efforts undertaken, among others, by the UN Security Council to alleviate tension in the Persian Gulf area and to settle the Iraqi problem through political and diplomatic means." "Moscow is still of the opinion that in the present tense situation it is necessary to show restraint and not to take actions leading to further escalation of tension around Iraq," the foreign policy department pointed out. In February British combat aircraft and US achieved a new record: the number of sorties reached 1732. For comparison: in January there were 1593 sorties. In the last month about 20 attacks were made against surface targets, the majority of them being communications hubs. Two people died. According to the information from Russian special services, most often missile and bomb attacks were delivered against installations in the provinces of Basra, Di-Kar, Kub, Meisan and Nainava. ------------------------------------------------------- http://en.rian.ru/rian/index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=3076704&startrow=1&date=2003-03-04&do_alert=0 Russian Information Agency (Novosti) March 4, 2003 AMERICAN CLERGY SHARE RUSSIAN STANCE ON IRAQ SETTLEMENT MOSCOW, March 4 /from RIA Novosti's Alexander Smotrov/ - US Church activists share the Russian stance on settling the Iraqi crisis, said a delegation while in conference with Alexander Saltanov, Russia's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, reports the ministerial press and information department. There are three on the delegation-Robert Edgar, Secretary General of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA; Keith Clements, Secretary General of the Conference of European Churches; and Leonid Kishkovsky, in charge of international and ecumenical contacts of the Orthodox Church in America. The conferees exchanged opinions on the tentative ways to settle the Iraqi crisis. The organisations the visitors represent are badly alarmed with an impending threat of armed conflict, which will certainly bring dire fruit to the world. As Mr. Saltanov reassured the gathering, Russia opposes prospects to use force on Iraq, and is working for team efforts-mainly within the United Nations-to fully and unconditionally implement UN Security Council resolution No. 1441. Such a way out of the crisis would promote the interests of Russia, the USA, EU countries, and the whole world. President George W. Bush conspicuously refused to receive a delegation of the US National Council of Churches not so long ago. The delegates, however, met with Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder of Germany; Great Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair, and Pope John Paul II, the council information service said to RIA Novosti. The delegation is in Moscow, March 3 into 5. Established in 1950, the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA unites 36 US-based Protestant, Anglican and Orthodox religious organisations to represent more than 50 million believers. ------------------------------------------------------- __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! 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