Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
19981116
Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan, began today's noon briefing by announcing that the Emergency Relief Coordinator and head of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Sergio Vieira de Mello, would be a guest at the noon briefing to talk about his recent trip to Central America and the efforts being made to coordinate relief assistance to the victims of Hurricane Mitch. (Mr. Vieiro de Mello's briefing has been issued separately.)
On Friday evening, Mr. Eckhard said, in consultation with the Security Council, the Secretary-General had sent a letter to President Saddam Hussein of Iraq repeating the public appeal he had made in Marrakesh, Morocco, on November 11, for Iraq to return to compliance with Security Council resolutions, an appeal that had been endorsed by the Council.
On Saturday morning, Iraq's Ambassador to the United Nations, Nizar Hamdoon, had delivered to the Secretary-General a response signed by Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, the Spokesman continued. In that letter, Mr. Aziz had announced Iraq's decision to resume working with the United Nations weapons inspectors on the basis of relevant Security Council resolutions and the Memorandum of Understanding between the Secretary-General and Iraq, signed last February. The Secretary-General had described the letter as a positive development.
The threatened military strike against Iraq by the United States, reportedly in the process of being launched, had been called off by United States President William Clinton, Mr. Eckhard stated. The Security Council had met Saturday evening and a number of members had sought clarification on the wording of the letter by Mr. Aziz. Those clarifications had been provided in writing by Ambassador Hamdoon. The Council had taken no action when it had adjourned late Saturday night.
The Secretary-General had kept in telephone contact with senior United States, Iraqi and other authorities throughout the night, Mr. Eckhard continued. On Sunday morning, President Clinton had announced that the United States would delay military action following Iraq's recommitment to complete compliance. The Secretary-General had described the President's announcement as "statesmanlike" and had said that "the entire international community would welcome his decision".
The Council had scheduled a meeting at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Mr. Eckhard said. However, a CNN interview with Mr. Aziz had raised new questions among some Council members, as to whether during the interview Mr. Aziz had stated certain reservations with regard to the letter he had sent to the Secretary- General on Saturday morning. The President of the Council had therefore asked the Secretary-General to seek clarifications, which the Secretary-General had
done through a telephone call to Mr. Aziz. The Secretary-General had then submitted the clarifications to Council members in the form of a note to the file summarizing that telephone conversation. The Council, in a press statement by its President, had then noted Iraq's decision, and had thanked the Secretary-General for his efforts.
The Executive Director of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) on Iraq, Richard Butler, had said he would send his weapons inspectors back to Iraq on Tuesday, Mr. Eckhard continued. The head of the United Nations Iraq Programme, Benon Sevan, had similarly announced the return to Iraq of United Nations humanitarian workers as of today, Monday. The Secretary-General had described the outcome as a "victory for diplomacy and resolve".
Asked if the agreement would work, the Secretary-General had said he could give no guarantees, the Spokesman said. "I'm not sure, if there is a next time", the Secretary-General had said, "that we would even have enough time for further diplomatic initiatives and appeals". The Secretary-General had concluded his remarks to the press last night by saying, "I have a mandate, I have a conscience and above all, I believe fervently in the Charter and in the ideals of the United Nations. That is what guides me".
Mr. Eckhard then said 86 UNSCOM and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) weapons inspectors would return to Baghdad on Tuesday via a United Nations flight from Bahrain, where they had been on stand-by since leaving Iraq last week. On Wednesday, another six UNSCOM staff would make the same journey. UNSCOM inspectors were expected to resume their duties on Wednesday.
In addition, Mr. Eckhard said, word had just come in that the first group of 30 humanitarian workers returning to Baghdad had arrived on a United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM) flight from Amman, Jordan. In addition, four buses and six vehicles carrying a second group of 100 humanitarian staff had left Amman at 11:15 a.m. local time. They were expected to arrive in Baghdad before midnight local time. The remaining staff in Amman were expected to head back to their duty stations tomorrow. As had been reported, the more than 200 staff in northern Iraq had remained throughout the crisis. The Lloyds Register staff -- the independent inspectors who had withdrawn on Friday -- had returned to three of the four entry points to Iraq. There had been no interruption in the availability of essential humanitarian supplies to the people of Iraq, according to the Office of the Iraq Programme.
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A correspondent asked for clarification on whether the letter sent by the Secretary-General on Friday night had been at the request of the Council, since the Security Council President had said there had been disagreement among Council members regarding the sending of the letter. Mr. Eckhard said the Council had debated sending a letter versus making a phone call and other options, and in the end the Secretary-General had said that under his own
Daily Press Briefing - 6 - 16 November 1998
authority he would send a letter, after which there had been no further debate.
Did the Secretary-General believe he could do business with Saddam Hussein and Tariq Aziz? a correspondent asked. Mr. Eckhard said that was a question from last February. That's why he was asking again, the correspondent said, in retrospect of all that had since happened.
"The situation this time has been between the Security Council and Iraq", Mr. Eckhard answered, explaining that the Secretary-General had described his role as "facilitator", and that it was not an issue of whether the Secretary-General could or could not do business with Saddam Hussein himself.
In response to a question about the time-frame for a comprehensive review for Iraq, Mr. Eckhard said that was now up to the Council. With the agreement that the UNSCOM inspectors could go back to work, the Council would presumably now make a decision regarding going forward with the comprehensive review. Did the Council need a message from the Secretary-General that inspections had resumed? "Yes, the Council had said that", Mr. Eckhard answered, "so first let's get the inspectors back to work and then we'll see how long it takes".
Asked for more detail on what the Council would request as a message from the Secretary-General, Mr. Eckhard said that on something of such importance, the message would probably be in writing. Asked whether the Secretary-General had a specific view on how long after resumption of inspections the comprehensive review would take place, Mr. Eckhard said the Secretary-General did not have a specific view on that.
"Is it fair to say, in effect, that the United States Government was not willing to wait for the Iraqi Government's reply to the Secretary-General's Friday night letter, since President Clinton said he had given the order to launch the Tomahawk cruise missiles"? a correspondent asked. "It is possible that the quickness of the Iraqi response may have taken some people by surprise", Mr. Eckhard answered. People in Washington? the correspondent asked. "And in New York as well", the Spokesman said.
Did that mean the Secretary-General's letter writing skills were vastly underestimated in their ability to convince people? the correspondent continued. Mr. Eckhard said the correspondent could be the judge of that. "So now he doesn't even have to travel to Baghdad, he can just send a note," the correspondent pursued. Mr. Eckhard said that would be some relief for the budget.
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Ms. Mihalic said that it was.
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