Iraqi Official Says U.N. Failed Iraq
By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer
UNITED NATIONS - Iraq's foreign minister accused the United Nations on Tuesday of failing to rescue his country from Saddam Hussein's 35-year "murderous tyranny." He urged the world body not to fail Iraq again and to return to help build a democratic nation.
But Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he needed "much greater clarity" on what the Iraqis and the U.S.-led coalition expect of the United Nations. That would help, Annan said, to gauge whether the job was worth the risk to U.N. staff.
Annan pulled all U.N. international staff out of Iraq in October after two bombings at U.N. headquarters in Baghdad and a series of attacks on humanitarian organizations. The first bombing on Aug. 19 killed 22 people, including top U.N. envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello.
Annan presented the council with a report — issued last week — in which he said Iraq remained too dangerous to reopen the Baghdad U.N. office. Instead, he said, the world body would open an Iraq office in Nicosia, Cyprus, and an annex in Amman, Jordan, with staff traveling to Iraq as needed. The operation will be under the leadership of newly named acting envoy Ross Mountain.
Zebari said the Iraqi Governing Council understood "the devastating losses that the U.N. suffered" but said the world body needed to return, noting the United Nations has continued operations in many other "dangerous and difficult situations."
"The United Nations is the key forum for collective international action to help us achieve our goals of restructuring and democratizing our country," he said. "Your help and expertise cannot be effectively delivered from Cyprus or Amman."
"We are ready and willing to help provide whatever security is required to see it return to Iraq," he said.
While paying tribute to the United Nations and its humanitarian relief efforts that helped millions of Iraqis during recent years, Zebari accused the world body of failing to take action to oust Saddam.
"One year ago, the Security Council was divided between those who wanted to appease Saddam Hussein and those who wanted to hold him accountable," he said. "The United Nations as an organization failed to help rescue the Iraqi people from a murderous tyranny that lasted over 35 years. Today we are unearthing thousands of victims in horrifying treatment to that failure."
"The U.N. must not fail the Iraqi people again," Zebari said. "So we ask you today, please put aside your differences, pull together and work with us and all those who have contributed and sacrificed so much to realize our shared objective of a sovereign, united and democratic Iraq."
Annan also urged the international community to ensure the restoration of sovereignty to the 26 million Iraqis to "define the future of their country."
While there may not be time to organize elections, Annan said, "it is essential that the process leading to the formation of a provisional government is fully inclusive and transparent" and that every segment of Iraqi society feels represented.
The secretary-general reminded the council that Saddam's capture three days earlier was not "a panacea" that would solve all the country's problems.
"Iraq is likely to remain a difficult environment," he said. "We should not expect that the end of the occupation and formation of a provisional Iraqi government will automatically bring about an end to insecurity, even though we should expect some improvement."
The secretary-general also said Saddam "should be held to account for his past deeds, through a procedure that meets the highest international standards of due process."
On Monday he said the United Nations could not support trying the former dictator before a tribunal that might sentence him to death.
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