War on Iraq Has in Fact Started, Alexander Shabanov Believes

A war on Iraq has in fact started, as U.S. army units have already deployed to battle formations in the north of Iraq, said Alexander Shabanov, Chairman of the State Duma Geopolitics Commission, during a press conference at RIA Novosti on Monday. According to him, the George Bush administration has decided to carry out a large-scale military operation against Iraq disregarding the decisions of the UN and other international organisations on the Iraq problem.

"Washington defies all moral norms and demonstrates to the international community that it is ready to tackle any international problems by force without regarding its NATO allies and UN member-states," Shabanov pointed out.

He believes that the U.S. claims to Iraq are ill-founded, therefore "the American aggression against the Iraqi people cannot be justified."