>IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 119 >Tuesday, September 12 2000 > > >LATEST AND MOST UP-TO-DATE NEWS....... > >U.S. rules out force for Iraqi arms inspections. > >UNITED NATIONS, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday ruled out >the use of force solely to try to make Iraq let U.N. inspectors monitor its >weapons programmes. >U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, speaking at the United Nations, >repeated the U.S. position that letting in the new U.N. inspection agency >UNMOVIK was the key to the United Nations easing sanctions imposed on Iraq >in 1990. > >But asked if the United States would use force if Iraq does not comply with >a U.N. resolution setting up the new agency. Albright said: "No. We have >said that they have a way of getting out of the sanctions box by letting >UNMOVIK back in." >The United States and Britain bombed Iraq in December 1998, saying Iraq was >obstructing the work of the previous agency, UNSCOM. No inspections have >taken place since then. > >Iraq has so far said it will not let in the new arms inspection team, led by >former Swedish Foreign Minister Hans Blix, arguing that it has already >destroyed all its banned weapons of mass destruction. > >Albright said: "The key here is Dr. Blix and UNMOVIK and he has said he is >ready to go in. It's a little bit like Alice in Wonderland. The key's on the >table. All he (Iraqi President Saddam Hussein) has to do is pick it up." >The United States has said that as long as Saddam refuses to let the >inspectors in, sanctions will stay in place. >It has however threatened military action against Iraq if it tries to >rebuild weapons of mass destruction, attacks the Kurds in the North or >threatens its neighbours. > >Iraq has also refused to allow experts recruited by U.N. Secretary-General >Kofi Annan to make an independent assessment of the humanitarian crisis >afflicting the country, according to a new U.N. report on Monday. > >Albright said Saddam was wholly responsible for the humanitarian crisis, >saying Iraq was pumping as much oil as it could. The United Nations oversees >the sale of the oil and some of the revenue is available to buy food. > >"It is not the international community that is keeping the Iraqi children >and people from eating... The villain is Saddam Hussein. It's very very >simple," she said. > >In her speech to the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday, Albright said Baghdad >was running a campaign against the authority of the United Nations and >international law. > >"Security Council resolution 1284 (passed last December) provides an >effective plan for protecting world security through resumed weapons >inspection," she said. > >"Baghdad has flatly refused to accept the resolution. The regime's strategy >is to ignore its U.N. Charter obligations, and seek to preserve at all costs >its capacity to produce the deadliest weapons humanity has ever known," she >added. >"We must continue to do all we can to ease the hardships faced by Iraq's >people. But we must also defend the integrity of this institution, our >security and international law," the Secretary of State added. > >In her remarks after the speech, Albright said Iraq was violating its >neighbours' airspace. She did not elaborate. > > >Iraq crude oil exports down 840,000 bpd in week. >NEW YORK, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Iraqi crude oil exports slipped 840,000 >barrels per day (bpd) to 1.69 million barrels per day (bpd) for the week >ended Sept. 8, but no reason was given for the sharp fall by the United >Nations, which released the figures. > >Iraq's four-week oil export average fell to 2.29 million bpd. It had been a >robust 2.38 million bpd for the four-week period ending Sept. 1. U.N. >officials say the four-week rolling average is a better method to measure >Iraqi oil exports than week-to-week differences. > >Iraq continued to set records for the price of its exported crude, which >tracks worldwide benchmarks. For the week, a new high in the oil-for-food >programme was reached at reached at $28.81 per barrel. > >The United Nations in the week approved four more Iraqi oil sale contracts, >bringing to 391 million barrels it has agreed to export in the current >eighth phase of the programme. >To meet this figure, Iraq will have to export about 2.32 million bpd of >crude by Dec. 5. > >Iraq's oil minister has said that Iraq will sustain oil exports of 2.3 >million bpd to the end of this year. > > >Russian expert plays down Iraq's refusal of entry to UN experts. >Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS > >Moscow, 12th September: An expert for the Moscow-based Institute for >Oriental Studies said on Tuesday [12th September] Iraq's refusal to allow UN >experts to make an assessment of the humanitarian situation in the >sanctions-battered country was a diplomatic move. > >"It is all a diplomatic game. One should not take such statements by Baghdad >seriously because Iraq has made similar demarches repeatedly," the head of >the Arab department's economic sector, Aleksandr Filonik, told ITAR-TASS. > >Filonik's statement came in comment on a report presented by UN >Secretary-General Kofi Annan to the Security Council on Monday about >Baghdad's refusal to accept a group of independent experts to assess the >scope of the crisis, from which Iraq has been suffering for the past 10 >years. > >Asked about rumours alleging that the sanctions might be lifted or eased >before the end of 2000, Filonik said such a decision depended not only on >the US, but also on other parties concerned. > >After the economic blockade is over, Russian companies should pour into Iraq >to try to snatch their part of the market, he said. > >However, the expert warned that due to Russia's current financial hardship, >it could only afford to develop Iraq's oil industry. > >"Russia's involvement in other spheres of Iraq's economy is out of the >question for a lack of money. Renewed cooperation would be quite contrary to >what was during the Soviet epoch, when Moscow assisted Baghdad in a lot of >projects," he said. > >Pakistan to export oil knowhow to Iraq and Qatar. >Karachi (Platt's)-12Sep2000/113 am EDT/513 GMT > >Petroleum ministers of Economic Co-operation Organisation (ECO) will adopt a >joint strategy for oil and gas exploration at a three-day meeting scheduled >to be held in Islamabad from Nov 6. ECO member countries-Pakistan, Turkey, >Iran, Afghanistan and six Central Asian States-would participate in the >meeting. Pakistan would like to have mutual co-operation among ECO member >countries for common benefit. "We will share our experience for exploration >of available natural >resources," Petroleum Ministry official said Tuesday. Pakistan has already >reached agreements with some countries including Qatar and Iraq to export >its expertise in the oil and gas sector. "Our experts will assist Iraq for >exploration of oil and gas," the official added. > > >Ten Iraqis sentenced to prison for "spying for Baghdad". >Text of report by 'Iran News' web site on 12th September > >Tehran: Ten Iraqis charged with spying for Baghdad have been sentenced to >prison by Tehran's Revolutionary Court, newspaper reports said yesterday. > >The men were also convicted of smuggling members of Iran's outlawed >opposition terrorist Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), which is based in >Iraq, and sharing information with them, the 'Resalat' paper said. They were >given prison terms of between three and 30 months and were also slapped with >fines, said the paper, which did not name the men or say when their trial >had taken place. > > >Iraqi writer mocks UAE speech, remarks on Iraq at Millennium Summit. >Excerpts from report by Iraqi newspaper 'Al-Thawrah' web site on 11th >September > >What makes the so-called Hamad Bin-Muhammad al-Sharqi, the ruler of >Al-Fujayrah, ask the [United Nations Millennium] summit to take Iraq to >account and to "force" it to release its so-called hostages? What makes the >head of the United Arab Emirates [UAE] delegation to the Millennium Summit >malign Iraq in his speech? The words used by the head of the UAE delegation >to the summit were indeed strange. We had never heard such words from any >UAE official before. His words were indeed unexpected and we wish we had not >heard them. It is true that UAE officials used to agree with the rulers of >Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in the final statements issued at the conclusion of >conferences of their Gulf [Cooperation] Council [GCC]. However, we do not >recall having heard for years that any UAE official before this Shaykh Hamad >has slandered Iraq or tried to malign its stances. > >In his speech before the Millennium Summit, the head of the UAE delegation >said, "we emphasize that the Iraqi government must complete the >implementation of the Security Council resolutions, especially those >pertaining to the prisoners and the detainees". He also called on the >international community to take Iraq to account and to force it to release >its "hostages". Perhaps this shaykh is ignorant of the facts; perhaps he was >psychologically and politically trained to use such words. Perhaps the >Saudis ensnared him and delegated him to talk about a subject they do not >want to talk about. At any rate, he used words that we did not expect to >hear from any UAE official, especially on this fabricated issue of alleged >Kuwaiti missing persons. Despite the above, we do not lose anything by >reminding this "western" shaykh that Iraq has completed the implementation >of the UN resolutions. However, he and uninformed people like him ignore >this fact. As for the fabricated issue of the missing Kuwaitis, Iraq has >also implemented all its obligations regarding this issue. Iraq has >repeatedly announced and continues to announce that it does not hold a >single Kuwaiti or non-Kuwaiti prisoner. However, the Kuwaiti regime is using >this fabricated issue to prolong the siege imposed on Iraq... > >O Shaykh Hamad, Iraq did not occupy your three islands; Iraq did not strike >a deal with Iran behind your backs. Actually, it was Iraq and its historic >leader Saddam Husayn who offered to liberate your three islands from Iranian >occupation. Would it not have been better for the head of the UAE delegation >to the Millennium Summit to ask the international community to take Iran to >task and to force it to release his three islands? Had it not been for Iraq, >which stood as an impregnable fortress before the Khomeyni tide in the early >1980s, Iran would not have stopped at the borders of Abu-Musa or Greater >Tunb or Lesser Tunb. Had it not been for Iraq, Al-Fujayrah itself would have >become an Iranian city and Iran would have divested its ruler of his throne >as well as of his headgear! > > >Iraqi paper condemns Saudi arms purchase from US. >BAGHDAD, Sept 12 (Reuters) - An influential Iraqi newspaper on Tuesday >condemned Saudi Arabia an arms purchase from the United States, saying there >was no threat to justify spending large amounts on defence. >Riyadh is seeking $2.7 billion in U.S. arms and technical support to help >modernise its National Guard and maintain a fleet of U.S.-made F-15 fighter >jets, the Pentagon said last week. > >One of the three packages requested by the Gulf kingdom would include $416 >million in vehicles, missiles and communications equipment built by General >Motors Corp. and Raytheon Corp., the Pentagon said. > >Another valued at $690 million would involve parts, maintenance, training >and modification facilities for the large Satudi fleet of F-15 jets built by >Boeing Co. The prime contractor for that would be Al-Salam Aircraft Co., >which is 50 percent owned by Boeing. > >"Is there a real need for a state like Saudi Arabia which is not threatened >by anyone to spend that unbelievable amount of money?" Babel newspaper, >owned by President Saddam Hussein's eldest son, Uday, asked. > >"America is looting Saudi money through selling out-dated weapons to them," >the newspaper said. >Iraq has accused Saudi Arabia in recent weeks of participating in patrols of >Western warplanes over Iraqi skies. > >U.S. and British planes based in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait patrol a no-fly >zone over southern Iraq, set up after a U.S.-led force evicted Iraqi troops > _______________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki - Finland +358-40-7177941, fax +358-9-7591081 e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.kominf.pp.fi _______________________________________________________ Kominform list for general information. 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