Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: elpolvo who wrote (3742)	8/2/2002 3:58:06 AM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." -Theodore Roosevelt

To: elpolvo who wrote (3742)	8/2/2002 4:08:08 AM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

Iraq Invites Chief UN Weapons Inspector to Baghdad Last Updated: August 01, 2002 07:27 PM ET By Evelyn Leopold UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Iraq on Thursday invited the chief U.N. weapons inspector to Baghdad for technical talks, as a possible step toward the resumption of arms inspections, according to a letter to Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The letter from Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri, obtained by Reuters, said chief U.N. inspector Hans Blix and his experts were welcome to discuss outstanding disarmament issues "to establish a solid basis for the next stage of monitoring and inspection activities and to move forward to that stage." Blix, the executive chairman of the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, known as UNMOVIC, was not immediately available for comment. The inspectors left Iraq in December 1998 on the eve of a U.S.-British bombing campaign to punish Baghdad for not cooperating with the arms experts. Accounting for Iraq's dangerous weapons is key to suspending U.N. sanctions, imposed when Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. With Washington threatening to attack Iraq, some U.N. Security Council members had been promoting further talks in hopes the return of the inspectors would delay any U.S. attempt to topple President Saddam Hussein. One key reason the Bush administration has given for a "regime change" is its suspicion that Iraq has restarted its weapons of mass destruction programs. Sabri and Annan last met in Vienna on July 4-5, the third time this year, to talk about the return of inspectors but did not reach an agreement. Annan made clear the United Nations was open to technical talks but that he would not meet Sabri again on this issue unless Baghdad showed willingness for the return of the inspectors. Blix at the Vienna meeting spoke to Iraq's arms experts at length but said later he could not review in detail outstanding disarmament issues until the inspectors returned and evaluated what had happened in the ensuing 3 1/2 years. Instead he said he wanted to talk about "practical issues" on the inspectors' facilities and movement. But Sabri, according to an unofficial translation of the letter, said the meeting should also follow up on a "comprehensive review to the disarmament file" and an assessment of how far Iraq had met its obligations. However, Sabri said the meeting of Blix and Iraqi experts did "not carry a premature judgement on what had been achieved on disarmament issues." He said the talks should aim for "common ground on the scientific and practical criteria to treat and resolve what UNMOVIC might see as the pending issues in the disarmament stage." reuters.com