Nadine,
Think anti-war folks will like this, particulary if europeans/UN buys in? Le grande reconcilliation begins???
cnn.com
Powell: U.S. to introduce U.N. resolution
Proposes U.N.-sponsored force under U.S. command
Wednesday, September 3, 2003 Posted: 2:08 PM EDT (1808 GMT)
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell on Wednesday said the United States has had discussions about the draft resolution with Security Council members.
Special Report: U.S. and coalition casualties
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration said Wednesday it would introduce a draft United Nations Security Council resolution that would authorize a multinational force and encourage Iraqis to set a timetable for holding elections and establishing self-rule.
Under the plan, the United States would keep a "dominant role" in the occupation and be in command of any multinational peacekeeping mission, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said.
But the resolution would give the United Nations a greater role in political and economic reconstruction of the country and establish a Powell termed a "political horizon" for the restoration of self-rule in Iraq.
"There are many roles to be played, and we believe that every peace-loving nation in the world -- every nation that would like to see a more stable Middle East, that would like to see a democracy arise in that part of the world -- would like to play a role," Powell said.
Powell said he was consulting with other countries about the proposed language. Initial talks with other Security Council members received a "positive response," Powell told reporters Wednesday. But he cautioned that ambassadors to the Security Council hadn't had a chance to study the draft yet.
The proposed resolution follows calls from leading members of Congress and President Bush's Democratic challengers in next year's election to solicit more international support for the occupation in the face of continuing guerrilla attacks and bombings.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the proposals are "a continuation of what we have been doing" and not a change of heart. He said the Coalition Provisional Authority, the U.S. administration in Iraq, has been "working closely" with U.N. officials.
McClellan said the new resolution would build on U.N. Resolution 1483, which recognized the United States and Britain as the occupying powers in Iraq and urged member states "to assist the people of Iraq in their efforts to reform their institutions and rebuild their country." It "would allow for the maximum possible international participation in helping the Iraqi people build a better future," McClellan said.
But U.N. officials said Wednesday they want to see a "meaningful" resolution that gives the United Nations a role in making decisions.
McClellan said the Coalition Provisional Authority, led by L. Paul Bremer, "will continue to oversee our efforts in Iraq, but we welcome the participation of others." Some countries that might have contributed troops to the reconstruction effort -- particularly India -- have balked because "they felt like they needed additional authority," he said. (Security Council members' support in question)
About 150,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Iraq, along with about 20,000 troops from Britain and other allies. A Polish-led multinational division of about 9,000 took over responsibility for security in most of south-central Iraq Wednesday. (Full story)
Among the countries in the Polish-led force are Hungary, Nicaragua, Bulgaria, Latvia, Slovakia, Fiji, Lithuania, the Philippines, Dominican Republic, Romania, Ukraine, Honduras, Mongolia, Thailand, Spain, Slovenia, Tonga and Kazakhstan.
Other developments
• In a step intended to bring Iraq closer to self-rule, ministers of the Iraqi Governing Council were sworn into office Wednesday. The council chose a slate of 25 cabinet ministers Monday. L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator for Iraq, reviewed the list, sources said. "They will run the ministries, the day-to-day business of government is in their hands," Bremer said Tuesday. "They will be involved in the final stages of the 2004 budget preps, and they will have responsibility for operating their ministries according to those budgets."
• An audio recording played on Arab television stations Monday is "probably the voice of Saddam Hussein," according to officials at the CIA. "We cannot say with absolute certainty," an official told CNN, "because the quality of the recording is low." But the official said that "the CIA assesses that it is probably the voice of Saddam Hussein." On the tape, Saddam denies complicity in Friday's bombing in Najaf that killed a senior Shiite cleric and at least 83 others.
• A new report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said that under present policies the U.S. military can maintain current troop strength -- 180,000 in and around Iraq -- only until March. After that time, the report said, a U.S. occupation force numbering 38,000 to 64,000 personnel could remain in the country indefinitely -- at a cost of up to $12 billion per year. (Full story)
• Former Army Secretary Thomas E. White, fired by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in April, levels scathing criticism of the Pentagon's handling of the postwar reconstruction effort in a new book. White, who had a rocky relationship with Rumsfeld, said the war against Iraq was launched "without a cohesive, integrated plan to build a stable self-sufficient country within an identified time frame."
• A plan to reposition three U.S. aircraft carriers around the world would temporarily leave the U.S. Central Command region, which includes Iraq, without an aircraft carrier presence for the first time since before the buildup to the war, Pentagon officials said. The plan would bring the USS Carl Vinson home in late September after about eight months in the region. |
