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Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)


19 December 1998

    US Government Statements and Transcripts

     TRANSCRIPT: CLINTON REMARKS ON IRAQ DECEMBER 19, 1998 - President Clinton has halted the latest series of air strikes on Iraq because the "operation is now complete, in accordance with our 70-hour plan," and pledged US support for efforts to change the government in Baghdad.
  • TRANSCRIPT: COHEN / SHELTON / WILSON BRIEFING ON IRAQ December 19, 1998 - Secretary of Defense Cohen told a Pentagon briefing in the early afternoon of December 19 that one of the key aims of the US and British air strikes on Iraq had been to degrade Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's ability to deliver weapons of mass destruction. "We estimate that Saddam's missile program has been set back by at least a year," Cohen said.
  • BDA Assessment Summary Briefing Charts - 19 December 1998
  • CESSATION OF MILITARY ACTION AGAINST IRAQ STATEMENT BY THE PRIME MINISTER, MR TONY BLAIR, DOWNING STREET, LONDON, SATURDAY 19 DECEMBER 1998 -- For obvious reasons until this moment we have been unable to tell you the anticipated length of the campaign but I can say now that it was always envisaged it would last four days. That is both because such a campaign is the right and proportionate response to Saddam's breach of UN obligations and also because of our sensitivity to the holy month of Ramadan.
  • VIDEOTAPED REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT TO THE ARAB WORLD December 19, 1998 7:00 AM EST -- Saddam simply must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.
  • RADIO ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT TO THE NATION 19 December 1998 -- I believe our action in Iraq clearly is in America's interest. Never again can we allow Saddam Hussein to develop nuclear weapons, poison gas, biological weapons, or missiles to deliver them. He has used such terrible weapons before against soldiers, against his neighbors, against civilians. And if left unchecked, he'll use them again.
  • MOD REPORT ON THIRD NIGHT OF OPERATION 'DESERT FOX' OPENING STATEMENT BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR DEFENCE, MR GEORGE ROBERTSON, MOD PRESS CONFERENCE, LONDON, SATURDAY, 19 DECEMBER 1998 Targets that were attacked by the RAF aircraft last night included Republican Guard headquarters which are the lynchpin of Saddam's regime. The Republican Guard are Saddam's force for internal repression, they keep him in power. ... the Republican Guard also play a central role in concealing, protecting and controlling Saddam's chemical and biological weapons programme ... Because the Republican Guard is central to Saddam's security, it is a key target for us. If the Republican Guard ceases to support Saddam his brutal regime is under immediate threat. So far in this campaign coalition aircraft have flown several hundred manned-aircraft sorties including over 100 bombing raids, some 300 Tomahawk cruise missiles have been fired and around 100 air-launched cruise missiles have been used. ... I want to say a little more to you today about the anthrax air force which I reported on yesterday. In 1995, Saddam launched a new programme using a converted training aircraft code-named L29. The first flights were started in 1997 and the testing programme is still continuing.
  • PRIME MINISTER'S ASSESSMENT OF LATEST MILITARY ACTION ON IRAQ EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW GIVEN BY THE PRIME MINISTER, MR TONY BLAIR, FOR BBC WORLD SERVICE, LONDON, SATURDAY, 19 DECEMBER 1998 -- We have done tremendous damage to the air defence system, to missile production, to his ability to fly for example these pilotless planes which could carry biological or chemical weapons, to his command-and-control systems, we are doing immense damage to the Special Republican Guard and we have carefully tried to limit any civilian damage.
  • 'STANDING UP TO SADDAM'S TERROR STATE' EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF PRESS CONFERENCE GIVEN BY THE FOREIGN SECRETARY, MR ROBIN COOK, LONDON, SATURDAY, 19 DECEMBER 1998 I have called this press conference because I want to spell out to the people of Britain why our forces are bravely risking their lives destroying Saddam's threat to humanity. Our objective is to achieve by military action the disarmament that Saddam will not allow the UN inspectors to carry out on the ground.
  • TEXT: STATE DEPARTMENT TRAVEL WARNING ON SYRIA 19 December 1998 -- The State Department has urged US citizens to defer nonessential travel to Syria and advised US citizens there to restrict their movements and "maintain a low profile."

    News Reports
  • CLINTON / IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- PRESIDENT CLINTON HAS ANNOUNCED AN END TO U-S AIR STRIKES AGAINST IRAQ, TELLING THE NATION THE MOST EXTENSIVE U-S AND BRITISH MISSILE ATTACKS SINCE THE GULF WAR HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY DEGRADED BAGHDAD'S ABILITY TO THREATEN THE WORLD WITH WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION.
  • COHEN ESTIMATES IRAQI MISSILE PROGRAM SET BACK AT LEAST A YEAR USIA DEFENSE DEPARTMENT REPORT DECEMBER 19, 1998 -- Secretary of Defense Cohen told a Pentagon briefing December 19 that one of the key aims of the US and British air strikes on Iraq had been to degrade Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's ability to deliver weapons of mass destruction. "We estimate that Saddam's missile program has been set back by at least a year," Cohen said.
  • IRAQ ATTACK OVER Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- DEFENSE SECRETARY COHEN SAYS FACILITIES THAT PRODUCE CHEMICAL OR BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS WERE PRIORITY TARGETS, AS WERE THE SPECIAL REPUBLICAN GUARD UNITS THAT HIDE AND PROTECT THE BANNED MUNITIONS.
  • BLAIR / IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- THE ANNOUNCEMENT CAME AT THE SAME TIME IN WASHINGTON AND IN LONDON (SATURDAY NIGHT): "OPERATION DESERT FOX" IS OVER. BRITISH PRIME MINISTER TONY BLAIR FOUR DAYS OF AIR STRIKES AGAINST IRAQ HAVE SUCCESSFULLY DIMINISHED SADDAM HUSSEIN'S MILITARY CAPABILITIES, AND LEFT MUCH OF HIS MILITARY INFRASTRUCTURE IN RUINS.
  • Clinton, advisers meet today to consider ending bombing of Iraq By Fred Kaplan, Boston Globe, 12/19/98 -- Some analysts inferred from the data that the bombing would have to go on for a while if Clinton intended to inflict serious damage on Saddam Hussein's military power. "They're off to a really encouraging start, but it looks to me like they've got a long ways to go,'' John Pike, a weapons analyst at the Federation of American Scientists, said after examining the data. "There's an awful lot of `light to moderate damage,' but I don't see very much in the `destroyed' or 'severe damage' columns."
  • THE ATTACK ON IRAQ - This time, weapons are more accurate BY PETE CAREY San Jose Mercury News Saturday, December 19, 1998 -- The claims made in the briefing were detailed and modest, said John Pike, military analyst with the Federation of American Scientists. "I think they were very careful to say that there are a lot of targets and that the bulk of targets they claim to have hit are in the light-to-moderate-damage category," he said. "Many of the targets they have attacked they say they are still assessing."
  • IRAQ ATTACKS RESUME Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- DEFENSE SECRETARY WILLIAM COHEN SAYS U-S - LED AIR STRIKES HAVE SERIOUSLY DAMAGED IRAQI TARGETS -- AND WILL CONTINUE. MR. COHEN SAYS THE RAIDS HAVE SET BACK SADDAM HUSSEIN'S ABILITY TO THREATEN HIS NEIGHBORS WITH WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION BY AT LEAST A YEAR.
  • ATTACKS ON IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- PRESIDENT CLINTON IS DUE TO MEET WITH HIS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISORS SATURDAY TO DECIDE WHETHER TO CONTINUE AIR STRIKES AGAINST IRAQ.
  • IRAQ ATTACKS RESUME Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- U-S MILITARY OFFICIALS SAY A FOURTH NIGHT OF ATTACKS IS UNDERWAY AGAINST IRAQ. EXPERTS ARE WORKING TO ASSESS THE DAMAGE FROM THE FIRST THREE WAVES OF ATTACKS.
  • BLAIR SAYS RAMADAN'S START PLAYED A ROLE IN MILITARY PLANNING By William B. Reinckens USIA 19 December 1998 -- Prime Minister Tony Blair, of the United Kingdom, said that the start of the Muslim sacred holiday of Ramadan was a factor in the military strategy aimed against the regime of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
  • CLINTON / IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- FOUR DAYS INTO A U-S AND BRITISH AIR ASSAULT ON IRAQ, PRESIDENT CLINTON SAYS HE BELIEVES THE MISSION IS GOING WELL BUT IN HIS WEEKLY RADIO BROADCAST TO THE NATION TODAY CLINTON GAVE NO HINT ABOUT HOW LONG AIR STRIKES WILL CONTINUE.
  • IRAQ STRIKES / ARAB REACT Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- U-S AND BRITISH LEADERS SATURDAY TRIED TO ASSURE THE ARAB WORLD THAT THE AIR STRIKES AGAINST IRAQ ARE AIMED AT CONTAINING THE IRAQI GOVERNMENT AND PRESERVING SECURITY IN THE REGION. BUT THEIR WORDS FAILED TO CALM RISING ANGER OVER THE ATTACKS.

    Domestic Criticism

    Domestic Responses

    International Responses
  • BLAIR/IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- BRITISH PRIME MINISTER TONY BLAIR IS ALREADY LOOKING TO WHAT COMES NEXT AFTER THE AIR STRIKES END, BUT HE WON'T SAY WHEN THE MILITARY OPERATION WILL STOP. CRITICISM OF THE PROLONGED MILITARY OPERATION IS INCREASING IN EUROPE AND THE ARAB WORLD.
  • BRITAIN/IRAQ ( Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- BRITISH DEFENSE OFFICIALS SAY AIR STRIKES BY TORNADO JETS IN IRAQ HAVE ACHIEVED 75 PERCENT OF THEIR OBJECTIVES.
  • BRITAIN/SADDAM Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- AFTER THE THIRD WAVE OF AIR STRIKES AGAINST IRAQ, BRITISH OFFICIALS ARE TAKING TURNS TO EXPLAIN WHY WASHINGTON AND LONDON DECIDED TO LAUNCH THE ASSAULT AGAINST SADDAM HUSSEIN'S MILITARY CAPABILITIES.
  • TAHA RAMADAN PRESS CONFERENCE Doha Qatar al-Jazirah Space Channel Television 1640 GMT 19 Dec [News conference by Iraqi Vice President Taha Yasin Ramadan with Arab and foreign correspondents in Baghdad] -- For four consecutive days, the leaders of the two aggressive countries said that they decided to strike Iraq because it failed to cooperate with the UN Special Commission [UNSCOM] and that the aim of their aggression is to curb Iraq's capabilities in terms of the production of weapons of mass destruction. They say that they do not seek to topple the regime, although they announced this a few weeks ago through the world's biggest liar in the world; namely, Clinton.
  • PALESTINIANS / IRAQ Voice of America 19 December 1998 -- IN THE WEST BANK, PALESTINIANS HAVE DEFIED POLICE BANS AND CARRIED OUT DEMONSTRATIONS IN SUPPORT OF IRAQ. THE PROTESTS ARE CHARGED WITH ANTI-AMERICAN AND ANTI-ISRAELI SENTIMENT.




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