Tracking Number: 236943
Title: "Iraq's Non-Compliance Takes 'Turn for the Worse'." Statement by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Ward in testimony before two House Foreign Affairs
subcommittees. (920729)
Date: 19920729
Text:
*NXE304
07/29/92 *
IRAQ'S NON-COMPLIANCE TAKES "TURN FOR THE WORSE" (Text: DAS Ward statement to HFAC, 7/29/92) (4500) Washington -- Iraq's record on non-compliance with United Nations Security Council resolutions has "taken a disturbing turn for the worse in recent weeks," Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs George Ward said in congressional testimony July 29.
"In the past the government of Iraq sought to evade UN requirements -- piecemeal -- through lies and other deceptions. Now, the Iraqi authorities are categorically refusing to cooperate with the UN on a range of issues," Ward said. He testified to the House of Representatives' Committee on Foreign Affairs sub-committees on Europe and the Middle East and Human Rights and International Organizations.
Iraq's non-compliance extends from "interfering with UN Special Commission and International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors, who are mandated by the Security Council to discover and eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and related programs, to blocking UN and other international humanitarian assistance to Iraq's population," Ward said.
"In defiance of the Security Council, Saddam Hussein has renewed a campaign of murder and destruction against his own people in southern Iraq," he added.
"The Government of Iraq cannot reasonably misunderstand the clear, unequivocal determination of the Security Council to see all relevant resolutions complied with," Ward stressed.
The following is the text of Ward's testimony, as prepared for delivery: (BEGIN TEXT) Thank you Chairman Hamilton and Chairman Yatron. I appreciate this opportunity to update you and the other members of your Subcommittees on Iraq's non-compliance with the requirements of UN Security Council Resolution 687, and related issues. Since last April, when my predecessor, Deputy Assistant Secretary John Wolf, testified before you, Iraq has continued its pattern of evasion of the requirements of the UN.
Iraq's behavior has in fact taken a disturbing turn for the worse in recent weeks. In the past the government of Iraq sought to evade UN requirements -- piecemeal -- through lies and other deceptions. Now, the Iraqi authorities are categorically refusing to cooperate with the UN on a range of issues. These extend from interfering with UN Special Commission and International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors who are mandated by the Security Council to discover and eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and related programs, to blocking UN and other international humanitarian assistance to Iraq's population. In defiance of the Security Council, Saddam Hussein has renewed a campaign of murder and destruction against his own people in southern Iraq.
The Government of Iraq cannot reasonably misunderstand the clear, unequivocal determination of the Security Council to see all relevant resolutions complied with. When he met with the Security Council in March, Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz was informed that Iraq had no choice but to comply. Yet we have seen the Iraqi authorities continue to defy the UN, most recently in refusing, until yesterday to grant the UN access to the Agriculture Ministry Building in Baghdad. The Iraqis are playing a dangerous game. Their behavior has called into question the terms on which the cessation of hostilities following Desert Storm was arranged.
WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION (WMD) We are confident that despite the efforts of Saddam Hussein's regime to footdrag, obfuscate, lie and evade, the UN can carry out the complex and daunting task of ferreting out Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and related production facilities and programs. The UN Special Commission (UNSCOM) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), aided by information and other assistance that we and other states provide, have demonstrated superb skill and dedicated perseverance in carrying out the task mandated under Resolution 687.
To date UNSCOM and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have conducted 40 inspections -- 13 nuclear, 12 ballistic missile, 8 chemical weapons (CW), 2 biological weapons (BW), two combined CBW, two chemical destruction, and one chemical destruction group (to establish a facility for the destruction of chemical munitions in Iraq). These have not been easy inspections. The Iraqis continue to try to obstruct the UN at every turn. But through unswerving perseverance and aggressiveness, as well as international support, the UN has made commendable progress uncovering details about Iraqi WMD programs.
The UN has begun to destroy equipment and facilities that were earmarked on previous inspections. The UN destroyed dual-use missile production equipment at Taji. The IAEA demanded and oversaw destruction at al Atheer, an Iraqi nuclear weapons facility. Chemical weapons destruction teams have begun the long and arduous job of demolishing thousands of munitions and vast stocks of chemicals at the Mutanna State Establishment.
The inspections, and more recently, the destruction of equipment and facilities, are deterring and eliminating Iraq's capabilities in weapons of mass destruction. The depth of Iraq's concern with this can be measured by its recent tactics. From July 5 to July 28, the Iraqi government refused access by a team of UNSCOM inspectors to a Ministry of Agriculture building. Despite a UN Security Council statement branding this act an "unacceptable breach" of its (Iraq's) obligations under relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and a trip to Baghdad by UNSCOM Chairman Ekeus to resolve this standoff, Iraq continued to rebuff the UN. Access to the building was gained only after Chairman Ekeus resolutely persisted in his demands, and after Iraq was warned of the serious consequences of failure to honor its obligations.
After false claims of having declared all remaining WMD, and months of promising "full, final and complete" disclosure of its WMD-related programs, Iraq submitted dossiers on all four weapons categories on June 8. Still, according to a multinational assessment at UNSCOM in July, this "final declaration" falls short. Moreover, one key issue, long term monitoring, remains unresolved.
The most recent UNSCOM ballistic missile team (the 11th), which left Iraq May 22, verified the remainder of Iraq's March 19 declaration, verified the destruction of dual use equipment and buildings and inspected 5 undeclared sites.
The IAEA has also started to destroy key components of Iraq's nuclear program. Despite Iraqi attempts to persuade the IAEA of its peaceful purpose, eight buildings and 29 pieces of equipment at al Atheer -- the core facility of Iraq's nuclear weapons program -- were destroyed in May.
Destruction of chemical weapons continues. A chemical destruction group has taken residence in Baghdad and is preparing for the incineration of gas munitions and hydrolysis of nerve agents over the next 18 months.
Funding for the Special Commission's essential work has been problematic. Under UNSCR 699, Iraq is to pay all costs associated with the destruction of its nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs, as well as the ballistic missiles specified in UNSCR 687. But such payment can only come about after Iraq has resumed oil exports. In order to provide UNSCOM with financing, the U.S. has made available $14 million to date, which includes $10 million from our payment of arrears and $4 million as a voluntary contribution. We plan to provide another $30.6 million from our payment of arrears by the end of July. All these funds are to be eventually reimbursed by Iraq.
I don't want to suggest that the UN is almost finished with inspections in Iraq, or that UNSCOM is resting on its laurels. Rather, the destruction phase is complementing continuing on-site and challenge inspections. Only through continued intrusive inspections, dogged pursuit of details, and long-term careful monitoring will we ever learn the true nature of all of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. The UN continues to plan, and we maintain our strong support for, inspections even as equipment already identified is destroyed. The UN and we are determined to enforce a critical element of UNSCR 687 -- long term monitoring as mandated by UNSCR 715.
RETURN OF STOLEN KUWAITI ASSETS Return of stolen military and civilian property has been very slow, but is finally making progress. The UN is overseeing and coordinating the return. When my predecessor addressed these subcommittees last fall, gold, currency and cultural property was in the process of being returned and we were pressing for return of the remaining civilian property and Kuwaiti military property, including I-Hawk missiles. Since then, some additional civilian equipment and part of the military property has now been returned, including boats, fixed-wing and rotary aircraft, aircraft engines and spares. An agreement between the UN, Kuwait and Iraq specifies that return of heavy military equipment, including the I-Hawks, will take place in Safwan this fall. While we are disturbed about the slow rate of return, it does appear that, with the assistance of the UN, progress is being made.
UNIKOM AND BOUNDARY COMMISSION We are very concerned by recent Iraqi behavior with regard to demarcation of the border between Iraq and Kuwait. In a letter dated May 21 to the Security Council, Iraqi Foreign Minister Ahmed Hussein appeared to call into question the finality of the work of the boundary commission. The letter also made historical arguments which appeared to call into question Iraq's acceptance of Kuwait. The Security council reacted sharply to this letter with a statement issued on June 17 that reiterated the finality of the Commission's work, reiterated the council's obligation to guarantee the inviolability of the Kuwait-Iraq border, and rejected any Iraqi suggestion calling into question the work of the Commission. In a press release announcing the finalization of its work on demarcating the land border, the Commission stated, "Both Iraq and Kuwait had every opportunity to provide the Commission with all relevant material and evidence."
In a July 12 letter to the Secretary General, the Foreign Minister of Iraq stated that the Iraqi representative would not participate in the sixth session of the Boundary Commission which was held from July 15 to 24 in New York. We commend the work of the Commission and support its findings, which will allow the border between Kuwait and Iraq to be finally marked on the ground. We would note that under the terms of UNSCR 687, Iraq is obligated to accept the findings of the Commission. The Commission has decided to meet again in September to consider the off-shore boundary.
UNIKOM is functioning well. Except for the issue of placement of five Iraqi border posts inside the de facto Kuwaiti border there are no significant issues to raise. UNIKOM has protested the border posts on the Kuwaiti side of the border and has reported to the UNSC. The Iraqis claim that the posts were in their current location before the war and have told UNIKOM they intend to keep them until the final border demarcation.
HUMANITARIAN SITUATION Iraq is required by Security Council Resolution 687 to release all Kuwaiti and other hostages at once. The agony of Kuwaitis whose loved ones were taken to Iraq during or at the conclusion of Iraq's brutal occupation, and whose fate is unknown, is heartbreaking. The Kuwait government has provided the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross with a carefully prepared and reviewed list of some 850 missing citizens believed to be in Iraq. Despite numerous requests by the UN and the ICRC, Iraq has not permitted ICRC monitors to visit places of detention and other areas where these abducted persons are believed to be held. While the return of Kuwaiti assets and weaponry continues, the inhumanity of Iraqi stonewalling on this most fundamental humanitarian obligation remains a matter of grave concern to Kuwait and the international community.
Iraq's campaign of deception extends beyond its efforts to preserve its high priority military programs. Saddam Hussein's regime has cynically trafficked on the misery of his own people in order to garner international support for the relaxation of sanctions against Iraq. The tragic plight of the Iraqi people, whose suffering is deliberately inflicted through the ruthless policies of the government of Iraq, is mocked by official Iraqi complaints that economic sanctions are the cause of hardships faced by the Iraqi population.
Well-fed henchmen of Saddam Hussein are happy to conduct foreign journalists on tours of hospital wards where mothers and young children languish, or to show on western television screens children crying for want of proper nourishment. Meanwhile Iraqi forces continue a blockade of internationally distributed food and other humanitarian supplies to northern Iraq. Elsewhere, Iraqi authorities warn citizens not to accept internationally provided assistance under pain of being charged with espionage. Food production in northern Iraq lags behind that elsewhere in the country. While Iraq has lately circulated the ludicrous charge that operation Provide Comfort aircraft have firebombed wheat fields, the truth is that Iraq has prevented the use of helicopters for aerial pesticide spraying of the fields and thereby diminished yields in the north.
The savagery Saddam Hussein has directed against his own people has been documented in chilling detail in a UN report on the human rights situation in Iraq prepared by Ambassador Max Van der Stoel, the UN's Special Rapporteur for Iraq. This report presents a very different picture from the one Iraq's propagandists would have us see. A government whose agents themselves coolly documented the methodical murder of tens of thousands of people who proved an inconvenience to the regime cannot expect credibility when it comes to pleading humanitarian concerns before international public opinion. Ambassador Van der Stoel's conclusion that the crimes committed by Saddam Hussein and his cronies against the people of Iraq are among the very worst seen by the world since the Second World War is not overstated.
The discovery of a large cache of documents in northern Iraq, apparently the files of the Iraqi secret police, has provided gruesome detail of Iraq's wholesale abuses of human rights and thoroughly supports Ambassador Van der Stoel's findings. These documents were removed from Iraq and are now deposited with the National Archives. The UN's Economic and Social Council has authorized another mission by Ambassador Van der Stoel to Iraq, and a further report on human rights in Iraq. A preliminary report will be presented to the General Assembly this fall.
The international community continues to be deeply concerned and responsive to the plight of Iraq's needy providing approximately 375 United Nations humanitarian personnel, 406 UN guards, 300 Red Cross workers, and 192 employees of private organizations in Iraq. The UN and its agencies have extended approximately $360 million in humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people since April 1991. The Red Cross has given another $100 million.
U.S. contributions include approximately $100 million to the UN, over 63,000 metric tons of food, and $6.9 million to private agencies for programs in Iraq. These amounts, together with the cost of Operation Provide Comfort, brings the total U.S. expenditure for the people of Iraq to nearly $650 million dollars in the past eighteen months.
BLOCKADE OF THE NORTH/REPRESSION IN THE SOUTH As I mentioned earlier, the government of Iraq apparently has no qualms about the hypocrisy of its public position on sanctions: while attacking internationally imposed trade sanctions, it restricts food, medicine and fuel reaching minority groups in northern and southern Iraq. There have also been a number of acts of intimidation and harassment aimed at UN and other personnel engaged in the humanitarian effort in northern Iraq. Firebombings, car bombs, refusal to grant permission to travel to international personnel are among acts for which we hold the government of Iraq accountable.
Because the Iraqi government has severely restricted access by foreigners to southern Iraq, we do not have a clear picture of the situation in this predominantly Shi'a region. We know that in recent days Iraqi forces using attack jet aircraft and helicopters to support elements of several divisions have been attacking Shi'a in the marsh areas north of Basra. Both these attacks in the south and the continued blockade in the north are flagrant violations of UNSCR 688, which requires Iraq to grant unimpeded access to humanitarian workers, and to refrain from any repressive measures against civilians.
Mr. van der Stoel also cites reports of other activities by the Iraqi army in the region of the southern marshes, including:
-- tightening of control over food destined for the area; -- evacuation of all areas within three kilometers of the marshes; -- killing of large numbers of animals and birds in the marshes; -- dumping of toxic chemicals into marsh waters; and -- military attacks that have resulted in hundreds of deaths. These repressive policies towards Iraqis living in the north and south and the array of human rights violations listed by Mr. van der Stoel, not to mention the repression shown during Iraq's occupation of Kuwait, make the truth inescapable: the biggest problem confronting the Iraqi people is not the sanctions imposed by the UN, it is the policies imposed by the government of Saddam Hussein.
INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN RELIEF Action must be taken to alleviate the suffering of vulnerable groups inside Iraq. After the Iraqi army chased hundreds of thousands of refugees into the mountains along the border with Turkey and Iran, the Security Council adopted Resolution 688. This resolution told Iraq to allow humanitarian organizations immediate access to those in need of assistance, and requested UN agencies to meet the critical needs of Iraqi refugees and displaced persons.
We recognize that UN agencies must, of necessity, work with authorities in Baghdad. For this purpose, and to establish the specifics of the UN's humanitarian programs in Iraq, the UN had signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the government of Iraq, which lapsed at the end of June. While Iraq's failure to renew this MOU is yet another example of Iraq's non-cooperation with the international community, we believe that it does not affect Iraq's basic obligations under UNSCR 688 to permit unhindered access by international humanitarian agencies to the people throughout Iraq. Since April, 1991, the UN has been helping refugees and the displaced, along with the most needy in vulnerable groups throughout Iraq. Between March and December 1991, donors provided almost $322 million to fund UN relief efforts in the Gulf region. In January, the UN requested $120 million dollars more to fund operations through June 1992. The U.S. responded with a pledge of $42 million, more than half the total received to date. Other donors contributed about $25 million. It is critical for the international community to continue to fund humanitarian programs in Iraq. We call on all donors who have not yet pledged to do so, quickly and generously. We recently announced a pledge of $6.5 million for the continued funding of the UN guard program and expect to make a further substantial contribution to other humanitarian programs shortly.
The UN has accomplished a great deal with this money. More than 1.3 million refugees were repatriated from Turkey and Iran to Iraq last year. Materials to build winter shelters were provided to about 74,000 families. More than 87,000 metric tons of food were provided, with three-quarters of it going to displaced persons concentrated in northern Iraq.
Just as important as the emergency supplies has been the maintenance of a 500-man UN Guard Contingent operating across northern Iraq and in the southern town of Basrah. The Guards are charged with providing security to UN personnel and equipment. They serve as de facto monitors whose presence deters violence on the part of both the Iraqi army and the Kurdish peshmerga.
IRAQ SANCTIONS In discussing the issues of sanctions and the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people, three points should be understood:
-- First, the sanctions imposed against Iraq by the United Nations in Security Council Resolutions 661 and 687 are designed to insure that the Iraqi leadership lives up to obligations clearly spelled out in various UN resolutions. Resolution 687 makes no provision for any easing of sanctions before Iraq fully complies.
-- Second, these sanctions were never intended to punish innocent Iraqi civilians. For this reason, medicine was excluded from the trade sanctions imposed before the war, and food and medicine have been excluded from the sanctions continued following the cease-fire.
-- Finally, the community will continue to battle the suffering which the repressive policies of the government of Saddam Hussein have brought to the Iraqi people. It will not, however, trust his government with unmonitored supervision of humanitarian assistance.
Many, led by Iraqi government officials, have overstated the impact of sanctions on the Iraqi public welfare. UN officials have assured us that there are adequate stocks of food in Iraq, and that malnutrition is not a serious problem in any region, apart from instances when Iraqi government policies block access to food. UN sanctions do not block the export of essential civilian items to Iraq. During the year ending March 1992, the UN Sanctions Committee was informed of plans to export 8.1 million metric tons of food to Iraq -- which is actually more than Iraq's annual prewar food imports. Recent reports from Baghdad indicate that the shelves are fully stocked with food, although at prices 30 to 100 times greater than before the Gulf crisis.
Yet Iraqis continue to finance imports, evidently drawing on personal accounts of hidden private reserves held outside Iraq, and probably by smuggling out Iraqi objects of value. Iraq continues to press for release of its frozen assets for humanitarian purchases, and several countries have allowed some Iraqi assets to be used. Most recently, Iraq has stepped up its pressure on the Bank for International Settlements in Basel to release $300 million for humanitarian purchases. The Bank's board has not yet acted, but may feel legally bound to do so soon.
SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS 706/712: Though a share of Iraq's imports of medicine, food and essential civilian items is being provided by relief agencies, the overwhelming majority is being purchased commercially by government and private buyers. We know that Iraq's finances are tight. Foreign exchange is in short supply and the value of the Iraqi dinar is collapsing. To assure that Iraq had the financial resources to purchase humanitarian supplies, the Security Council offered resolutions 706/712. Iraq has turned this offer of an exemption to the embargo into a travesty -- refusing to implement the offer while seeking to highlight and exploit the suffering of the Iraqi people. Saddam has played on the hopes and good intentions of the world while dragging out the suffering of his citizens, by engaging the UN in fruitless discussions on the modalities of implementation, and then suspended these talks last month.
The UN has discussed for many months with Iraq ways to implement UNSC resolutions 706/712, which allow Iraq to export oil and buy humanitarian goods under UN supervision. Negotiations were suspended the middle of last month, and on July 11 the Iraqi government notified the UN that it categorically rejected 706/712, and was not willing to export oil and import goods under the conditions of U.N. supervision unposed by 706/712.
Iraq, which arrived at its present circumstances by invading its neighbor, complains that the measures advocated by the UN would violate Iraq's sovereignty. Iraq has demanded sole control of the sale of oil and disbursement of oil revenues, without UN supervision or monitoring.
We believe the Security Council has made it unmistakably clear that until Iraq complies with all pertinent UN resolutions, any oil exported from Iraq must be pumped under the mechanisms established by resolutions 706/712. The international community has made it clear to Iraq that, given Iraq's dubious record, there also must be international supervision of both the export of oil and the distribution of humanitarian relief. Saddam cannot be trusted with unfettered access to oil income, having for the past decade devoted much of Iraq's fortune to military expenditures rather than to improving the welfare of his people.
Saddam is solely responsible for the unfortunate situation of many of the Iraqi people. If the Iraqi Government continues to refuse to cooperate with the implementation of resolutions 706 and 712, there may well be a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Iraq. We will also need to ensure continued funding for the various U.N. operations in Iraq -- such as the work of the Special Commission overseeing the elimination of weapons of mass destruction -- aimed at determining full Iraqi compliance with U.N. mandates.
We are looking at various options for dealing with this. As the Committee is aware, one such option would be a new U.N. Security Council resolution which would make use of frozen Iraqi assets overseas to keep U.N. operations going, and would demonstrate to Saddam Hussein that the U.N. is in charge, and that he cannot escape compliance with U.N. resolutions. We are in the process of consulting with other members of the Security Council and with Congress on this possible approach.
FUTURE PLANS Until funds are available from oil pumped under resolutions 706 and 712, or from some alternate source, the UN will continue to operate under its January six-month plan of action which has been extended now through August.
On the ground, the UN will continue to help refugees and displaced persons. It also aims to meet the most basic needs of at-risk populations, focusing particularly on support for essential sanitation, medical, and agricultural services. While the focus will remain on northern Iraq, the UN is also working to expand operations in the south.
In April, UNHCR began phasing out its operations in northern Iraq as most of the refugees and displaced have been resettled, most in their former homes. The needs of the Kurdish population have changed from those of resettlement to at, emphasis on health, sanitation, and food assistance. UNICEF is the nominal lead agency in northern Iraq, working closely with WHO, FAO as well as representatives from private voluntary organizations.
CONCLUSION Nearly eighteen months after Saddam Hussein's armies were expelled from Kuwait, the humanitarian situation in Iraq is still unsettled. Saddam Hussein continues to repress his people; the international community continues to respond compassionately to the their suffering. Coupled with the continuation of his tyrannical practices, Saddam Hussein's efforts to evade the elimination of his weapons of mass destruction complete the portrait of a classic dictator, dangerous both to his own people and to his neighbors.
In our urge to do all we can to end the suffering of Iraq's innocent population, we must not lose sight of its root cause: the disdain for the rule of law and the inhumane policies of the government of Saddam Hussein.
The framework established by the 12 resolutions enacted by the Security Council since the cessation of hostilities against Iraq provides the best means for meeting the humanitarian needs of Iraqi civilians, and for ensuring regional peace and security by dismantling the threat Saddam's arsenal could pose to his neighbors.
Accomplishing these intertwined goals will be among the UN's highest achievements to date. The U.S., along with the rest of the international community, has a strong interest in seeing the UN successful in this great endeavor.
(END TEXT) NNNN
File Identification: 07/29/92, NX-304
Product Name: Wireless File
Product Code: WF
Keywords: WARD, GEORGE/Speaker; CONGRESSIONAL TESTIMONY; HOUSE FOREIGN AFFAIRS
CMTE; IRAQ-US RELATIONS/Policy; IRAQ/Defense & Military; INSPECTIONS; ARMS CONTROL VERIFICATION; UNITED NATIONS-SPECIAL COMMISSION ON IRAQ; UNITED NATIONS-SE
Document Type: TXT
Thematic Codes: 1NE; 1UN; 1AC
Target Areas: NE
PDQ Text Link: 236943
USIA Notes: *92072904.NXE WARD/TEXT/HFAC HEARING/7/29/IRAQ/UN/RM yb kf
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