Ritter describes inspections that required up to six months of meticulous study and rehearsal. Imagine the choreography of it, he says. With helicopters hovering above, his people hit the site from four directions, intercepting the radio traffic, cameras recording everything. ''That's an inspection, ladies and gentlemen!'
'Saddam would complain that Unscom was being used as a cover for American and Israeli espionage operations, and it was true that the relationships between inspectors and the intelligence agencies they relied upon were complicated and sometimes compromised. Ritter was enveloped by spy games, and they thrilled him. He had stuff going with the Brits, the Aussies, the Kiwis. He joined the Romanians in a ''major intelligence sting.'' But the clandestine work, however vital, occasionally had his head doing somersaults about vying loyalties. This arrangement -- an American citizen mingling with foreign operatives while being responsible only to the United Nations -- was highly unusual. Ritter felt compelled to ask the Central Intelligence Agency for guidance, but, he says angrily, ''the U.S. government would never commit -- never commit -- to modalities or rules and regulations.'' Ritter sorted it out this way in his mind: America supported the Security Council, which oversaw Unscom, which oversaw him. He felt he was on solid ground as long as he informed his U.N. bosses of everything.
As the highway turned east, trees seemed to be tossing leaves into the wind. Everywhere, brilliant oranges and yellows were afloat, though the scenery was more serene than the conversation. Ritter had launched into one of his better rambles, the one where he hates Saddam as much as the next guy, probably more. ''Blow the hell out of him, 60 days of bombing, kill them all,'' he said. I inquired, Who's them? ''All the senior Iraqis. They're poison. They are absolutely poison.''
I asked, But isn't that what Bush wants to do? ''Bush isn't smart enough,'' he said. ''There are only a handful of people that are smart enough to do this'' -- Ritter himself among them.
But in mid-harangue, his peaceable side resurfaced. He was talking again about the Constitution and how Americans needed to honor their commitments to the United Nations. ''The Constitution defines what I have to do,'' he said.
Interesting. |
