16 October 1997
SECURITY COUNCIL URGED TO STAND FIRM ON IRAQI COMPLIANCE
(IAEA, UNSCOM still question Iraqi weapons programs) (1060) By Judy Aita USIA United Nations Correspondent United Nations -- The head of the Special Commission Overseeing the destruction of Iraqi weapons (UNSCOM) asked the Security Council October 16 to stand firm on its insistence that U.N. weapons experts be allowed access to suspected weapons sites in Iraq and to remain united in its determination to see the Gulf War cease-fire demands for the destruction of the banned weapons programs completed. Ambassador Richard Butler, UNSCOM executive director, recommended to the council that at the end of its current sanctions review it one, issue a statement that shows "renewed determination to see disarmament through to its end; two, insist that Iraq must present to the council ... the full facts of its proscribed weapons, including ... those it has sought to conceal; third, insist upon the rights of the commission ... to inspect any site and interview any person in Iraq relevant to the verification of weapons programs." "The unity of council is essential because of the intrinsic importance of these weapons issues and because the council should never accept the refusal of any state to implement its decisions," Butler told journalists after his private meeting with the council. The Security Council October 16 was told by Butler and the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that while there has been considerable progress in disarmament, questions remain. Especially troubling have been Iraq's continued attempts to block some inspections. "We have been making progress in disarmament and I hope the council recognizes that and I hope Iraq recognizes that and goes on and does some more," Butler said. "But there was also very serious concern expressed in the council about the access issues, about denial of the commission's rights." Butler also reported to the council that Iraqi Ambassador Nizar Hamdoon told him that if the council imposes additional sanctions on Iraq, Baghdad will stop cooperating with the U.N. Hans Blix, IAEA director general, said that his agency still has "a number of questions" about Iraq's nuclear weapons programs and is not prepared to state that its investigation into the program is complete. The IAEA is responsible for uncovering, dismantling, and monitoring Iraq's nuclear weapons programs under the Gulf War cease-fire agreement spelled out in resolution 687. IAEA works with UNSCOM which was set up to handle the other banned weapons -- chemical, biological, and ballistic. Speaking with reporters after his private meeting with the council, Blix said that one of the outstanding issues is "possible further external assistance to nuclear programs which (Iraq) may not have reported to us.... We see some evidence of some non-reported assistance and we are trying to follow that up." Blix said he also "cautioned the council that beyond questions which arise from our study of a coherent nuclear program and interrogations in Iraq, from talking to suppliers etc., there could be questions which are not prompting themselves that way. There could be still components which we cannot see." "There could have been some program or some activity outside what we term 'a coherent technical picture,'" he said. "We can never guarantee against the existence of such questions and therefore, in the case of Iraq as in the case of any other inspection, there always remains an element of uncertainty." Deciding on what degree of uncertainty is acceptable is a political judgment, not a technical judgment, that must be made by the Security Council not IAEA, Blix said. In IAEA's written report to the council, Blix said that "IAEA's activities regarding the investigation of Iraq's clandestine nuclear program have reached a point of diminishing returns and the IAEA is focusing most of its resources on the implementation and technical strengthening of its plan for the ongoing monitoring and verification." "The IAEA is not 'closing the books' on the its investigation of Iraq's clandestine nuclear program and will continue to exercise its right to investigate any aspect of Iraq's clandestine nuclear program, in particular through the follow-up of any new information developed by the IAEA or provided by member states," the report said. Despite Iraq's cooperation, UNSCOM still has serious concerns that not all prohibited chemical, biological, and ballistic weapons have been accounted for and disposed of, UNSCOM said in its biannual report to the Security Council. The written report from Butler released earlier in October said that it "strongly believes that relevant materials and documents remain in Iraq and that there have been highly coordinated actions designed to mislead the commission." A major issue during the current review is Iraq's continuing attempts to block inspections. It reached serious proportions in June when Iraqi officials aboard U.N. helicopters took action to prevent the weapons inspectors on board from landing at specific sites, endangering all those on board. Iraq also denied the team access to three sites designated for inspection and refused to allow the team to interview Iraqi personnel. In late June, the council adopted resolution 1115 demanding that Iraq allow U.N. weapons inspectors immediate and unconditional access to all sites and records the inspectors wish to see and warned that it would impose additional sanctions if Iraqi authorities continue to block U.N. weapons inspections. However, the problem has not abated. In all, there were six serious incidents in a two-week period at the end of September, UNSCOM reported. Between September 10 and 20, U.N. chemical weapons inspectors on three different occasions at three different sites recorded evidence of the removal or movement of documents and records, and the destruction of documents, the report said. In another incident in September an UNSCOM inspector was manhandled on board a U.N. helicopter while he was attempting to take photographs of the unauthorized movement of Iraqi vehicles inside a site designated for inspection, the report said. The four UNSCOM inspectors allowed into the site "further reported that documents had been moved in or removed from the inspection site." Other incidents in September "apart from raising serious concerns about the commitment of the Government of Iraq to ensure the safety of UNSCOM personnel ... raised fundamental questions about the way in which the modalities for inspection of sensitive sites were being applied by Iraq," the report said.
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