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.

Gold/Mining/Energy : Strictly: Drilling and oil-field services -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Don Westermeyer who wrote (27336)	8/7/1998 3:39:00 PM
From: Captain James T. Kirk	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 95453

IMO, World War III will be the result of the U.N. being a kinder, gentler organization : Friday August 7 12:17 PM EDT U.N. Panel Condemns Iraq Action SAU CHAN Associated Press Writer UNITED NATIONS (AP) - Choosing words over warfare, the Security Council called Iraq's refusal to allow arms inspections ''totally unacceptable'' but dangled the possibility of U.N. concessions if Saddam Hussein cooperated. The 15-member council on Thursday condemned Iraq's decision to snub weapons chief Richard Butler, but did not disclose what it planned to do about it, except to build a more effective dialogue with Iraq. ''The Security Council called the Iraqi action totally unacceptable,'' said the council's current president, Ambassador Danilo Turk of Slovenia. But in a follow-up briefing today, Turk said the council did not discuss consequences for Iraq - and said that alleviating sanctions would not be out of the question if there is progress in arms inspections in coming months. ''There have been situations when sanctions regimes have changed,'' Turk said. Iraq's actions contradict an agreement Secretary-General Kofi Annan struck with Saddam in February, the last time Iraq blocked the weapons inspectors from carrying out their searches, the council said. The deal averted an attack by the United States and Britain, which had sent forces to the Persian Gulf to back their insistence on inspections. This time, however, there seemed to be little appetite for a fight: the Security Council's plea for increased dialogue received unanimous approval. The council even hinted it may ease sanctions, saying it ''intends to respond favorably to future progress.'' ''I believe the Iraqi position on this issue is not a closed one,'' said Annan, who consulted with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz before attending the council session. ''It might be helpful to engage the Iraqis much more closely than we have,'' he said. Even U.S. Ambassador Bill Richardson backed the coordinated Security Council effort. ''We are acting in consultation with the U.N. Security Council,'' he said. ''This is not a battle between the United States and Iraq.'' Talks with Iraq broke down Monday, when Butler refused to certify that Iraq has destroyed all of its weapons of mass destruction. Butler is the head of the U.N. Special Commission, which monitors chemical and biological weapons and long-range missiles. Iraq told weapons inspectors Thursday that they cannot check new sites. It also banned surprise inspections by the U.N. agency that conducts nuclear inspections, the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency. David Kyd, a spokesman for that agency, said in Vienna today that its inspectors were preparing to visit Iraq again on Saturday. But Kyd said the new restrictions will make it difficult if not impossible for them to determine whether Iraq has revived its nuclear weapons program. One option may be to consider proposals by some members, notably Russia and France, to alleviate some sanctions. Russia and France have pending financial interests in Iraq, while other nations are concerned about the effects of the embargo on civilians; Iraqis say the sanctions are responsible for the deaths of 500 children a month. The council's decision to take a less confrontational tack with Iraq reflects international weariness with the issue, which the Iraqis hope will accelerate the lifting of sanctions that have debilitated their country for eight years. ''We are frustrated, we are fed up. ... It is now so clear Mr. Butler changes his declarations from time to time,'' said Said Hasan, the Iraqi charge d'Affaires at the United Nations. Iraq said it believed Butler's attention to detail and his demand for documentation was a ploy to extend the sanctions at the behest of the United States. Butler had said he found the stance puzzling because the commission is close to declaring Iraq in compliance in some weapon categories. Yet even Butler, a technician who often eschews diplomatic niceties, has softened his language considerably in recent days, causing speculation that he was under fire from his bosses. Later Thursday, in a CNN interview, Butler called for a ''slightly new creative way'' of getting arms inspections done without ''repeating this syndrome every few months.'' Support for the chief U.N. inspector was strong Thursday. Annan said Butler had done a ''very good job'' and expressed some sympathy for Iraq as well. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------