DoD News Briefing
Thursday, August 03, 2000 - 2:08 EDT
Presenter: Mr. Kenneth H. Bacon
Q: I have an Iraq question, as we're looking at the anniversary of the conflict in Iraq. Many people have charged that Saddam Hussein has been diverting or skimming some of the proceeds from the U.N.-sanctioned oil-for-food program in order to prop up his regime, and not aiding the Iraqi people. I'm just wondering if the Pentagon, A, shares that view, and B, has any evidence of that, any concrete evidence that that's the case?
Bacon: The oil-for-food program is carefully audited by the U.N. and is designed to prevent the type of skimming you just mentioned. The main source of revenues for Saddam Hussein, as I understand it, comes from the illegal oil smuggling that is done sometimes with the complicity of the Iranians. And that, of course, is increased -- it goes up and down with oil prices. When oil prices rise, the smuggling rises because the profits rise. The risks are compensated for better by the higher oil prices. And because oil prices have been up over the last year or so, the smuggling has increased; it varies from month to month, but it has increased. I believe that's the primary source of the money that he uses to fund his 80 palaces and fancy residences that aren't generally available to the Iraqi people but are available to him and his family.
Yeah?
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