Iraq orders US inspectors out
Iraq ordered American members of UN weapons inspection teams out of the country today, despite a unanimous UN Security Council resolution condemning Iraqi threats to expel the inspectors.
Iraq has demanded that the weapons inspection teams and their leadership reflect a "balance" of members from representative nations on the Security Council, but the UN resolution maintains that Iraq is not in a position to dictate the makeup of the team's membership. Iraqi deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz has said that US members, who constitute 32% of the teams, are "spies" serving US, not UN, interests.
The Security Council resolution condemns Iraq's call for American inspectors to leave, demands the cooperation of the Iraqi government with UN weapons inspectors, authorizes travel bans on Iraqi officials who obstruct weapons inspections, and allows for further measures should Iraq not cooperate with UN inspectors.
US State Department spokesman James Rubin had indicated that Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was working the phone constantly to win unanimous support for the UN resolution. However in order to win unanimous approval, the resolution had to be watered down from language threatening Iraq with "serious consequences" if it did not abide by the resolution.
The US ambassador to the UN, Bill Richardson, repeated that, "We're not ruling anything in or out," including military action, if necessary. Security members such as China,Russia and France said explicitly that the UN resolution does not extend to the use of force.
Earlier in the week, Iraq received high-profile support in the Arab world. Sheikh Zayed, president of the United Arab Emirates, had urged Arab reconciliation with Iraq, and getting past the problems that afflicted the Arab countries as a result of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and subsequent events. In a press release circulated in Jeddah, the Organization of the Islamic Conference Secretary General Dr. Izzeddin Laraki called upon the concerned parties to settle the crisis through dialogue. The OIC chief called for full implementation of all relevant UN Security Council resolutions to guarantee peace and sec
US President Bill Clinton is meeting today with security advisors in order to explore the latest developments and US options in dealing with them. Clinton said the teams had found evidence of "enough chemical, biological, and incipient nuclear technology," to justify continued inspections. Latest indications are that the US will focus its efforts on garnering more international support.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, met with Aziz today and said in the light of the Iraqi order to expel the American inspectors, he is considering removing the entire UN team from Iraq.
Updated: UN's Richard Buttler said that the UN inspection team is leaving Iraq tomorrow except for a small number that will stay in the headquarters to maintain the UN building.
Buttler had made a request of the Iraqis to allow US members to leave tomorrow along with other UN members instead of today as ordered.