Iraq says US-prepared resolution is impracticable

The new draft resolution of the United Nations Security Council on Iraq prepared by the US and the UK is absolutely impracticable, said Abdel Al-Hashemi, the chairman of the Iraqi organisation of friendship, peace, and solidarity with foreign countries, at a press conference in Moscow.

"If you read the draft resolution prepared by the US and Great Britain, you will share my conclusion: it is drawn up so that it is impossible to implement it." According to him, after Iraq proves unable to comply with the resolution, the US and Britain will have a good pretext to claim they have grounds to carry out a military operation against Iraq.

The Iraqi representative stressed that according to Baghdad there is no need for adopting any additional resolutions, as the already existing decisions of the Security Council are a sufficient base for the work of international inspectors.

Al-Hashemi said, while commenting on the recent statement by Hans Blix, the Chairman of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), that it was not Blix who had to decide on the continuation of the UN inspections in Iraq. The UN official had said the international inspectors must return to Baghdad only after an additional tough resolution had been adopted. "This decision must be taken by the Security Council," the Iraqi representative said.

He recalled that Iraq had declared its readiness to admit international inspectors without any preliminary conditions. After that the US backed off and said the inspectors could not be sent to Iraq before an additional resolution was adopted," Al-Hashemi said.