UN Security Council gives Iraq money to UN, IAEA

The UN Security Council, the organization that debated the decision of war against Iraq, and failed to prevent the US from attacking Iraq, and a body that the US declared irrelevant if it does not agree with it on the US decision to attack Iraq, is still in charge of Iraq's money, and is dispersing money to the UN and one of its agencies responsible for past inspection of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

The UN Security Council has approved the transfer of somewhat over $400,000 that had been in the escrow account of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) for Iraq to be credited against that country's UN dues, according to documents made official yesterday.

Responding to a proposal by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the Council said the approximately $416,000 could go toward assessments for the UN regular budget, peacekeeping, tribunal activities and the capital master plan.

Before the 2003 United States invasion, under Security Council resolutions on Oil-for-Food, 0.8 per cent of Iraqi oil revenues was allocated to UNMOVIC, which inherited from the UN Special Commission (UNSCOM) the task of verifying Iraq's compliance with its obligation to renounce weapons of mass destruction.

Previously, the Council approved transfers of some $22 million out of the escrow account to cover similar dues, as well as Iraq's outstanding arrears with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).