30 August 2002
Under Secretary Bolton Says Regime Change Needed in Iraq
(Also warns of Iraq's quest for weapons of mass destruction) (2170) Iraq should undergo a change of regime for the good of its people and in the interest of peace and stability in the region, but how that change should take place "is a subject that's still open for decision," says Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security John Bolton. In an August 27 interview with Fuji-TV in Japan, Bolton called attention to "the danger that Saddam Hussein's regime poses." "Saddam Hussein is a brutal dictator. He has oppressed his own people. He has used chemical weapons against his own citizens. He's used chemical weapons in the Iran-Iraq war. He has a long history of aggression against his neighbors, including the invasion of Kuwait in 1990, and he has been aggressively pursuing and quite likely obtaining weapons of mass destruction," he said. According to Bolton, Saddam Hussein has been trying to acquire "a nuclear chemical and biological warfare capability" and has sought "new kinds of ballistic missile technology to deliver those weapons." "All of that makes him a real threat, and therefore it's ... a very prudent and logical conclusion that he needs to be replaced, and the people of Iraq need to be given the chance to have a representative government elected," he said. The Under Secretary said the United States was engaged in consultations with Japan and other nations to explain the threat Iraq presents to world peace. "I think a number of leaders around the world would draw the conclusion that the aggressive pursuit of weapons of mass destruction is not in their interest," he said. Bolton stressed that Saddam Hussein "would be very poorly advised to even consider using any of his weapons of mass destruction against the United States or its friends or allies." The use of weapons of mass destruction "can only have terrible consequences for everybody involved," he said. Bolton also expressed concern about North Korea's programs involving weapons of mass destruction, both "in terms of their indigenous capacity and in terms of their outward proliferation with other rogue states, such as Iran and Iraq." "We have been having consultations on the question of North Korea, as we do in our general discussion with Japan on arms control and non-proliferation issues," he said. For the United States, Bolton said, the issue is "when North Korea wants to have a serious discussion with us, as President Bush has repeatedly offered, so we can begin to address these very serious non-proliferation issues with them." Following is a transcript of Under Secretary of State John Bolton's August 27 interview on Fuji-TV: (begin transcript) U.S. EMBASSY TOKYO Press Office UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN BOLTON Interview with Fuji-TV August 27, 2002 Tokyo, Japan QUESTION: Today I would like mainly to know about the possibility of a U.S. attack on Iraq in the near future. Will the Bush administration decide to attack Iraq in the near future? U/S BOLTON: Well, the policy of the Bush administration is that for the good of the people of Iraq and in the interest of peace and stability in the region, that there should be a change of regime in Baghdad. Saddam Hussein is a brutal dictator. He has oppressed his own people. He has used chemical weapons against his own citizens. He's used chemical weapons in the Iran-Iraq war. He has a long history of aggression against his neighbors, including the invasion of Kuwait in 1990, and he has been aggressively pursuing and quite likely obtaining weapons of mass destruction. He's been after a nuclear chemical and biological warfare capability, and he's been seeking to acquire new kinds of ballistic missile technology to deliver those weapons. All of that makes him a real threat, and therefore it's, I think, a very prudent and logical conclusion that he needs to be replaced, and the people of Iraq need to be given the chance to have a representative government elected. Now, how regime change is accomplished is a subject that's still open for decision. So there is no decision on the use of military force, and indeed a number of possibilities are being considered. We think what's important now is for people around the world to appreciate and understand the danger that Saddam Hussein's regime poses. And that's one reason why we're engaged in consultations here in Japan and elsewhere. QUESTION: Everyone agrees that the mass destruction was terrible and terrorism cannot be forgiven, but I don't understand how an attack on Iraq would reduce the threat of mass destruction. Do you think that an attack on Iraq will promote peace and security? U/S BOLTON: I think that changing the regime in Baghdad would promote international peace and security. I think that Saddam Hussein's aggressive behavior throughout his history as the head of the government there demonstrates that he continues to pose a threat, both in the region and to our friends and our forces there. It's particularly important to understand the nature of the threat that weapons of mass destruction impose. It's an asymmetric threat in the sense that you can be a strong and powerful country and still be threatened by a weak impoverished country that has even a few ballistic missiles and the ability to launch weapons of mass destruction with them. So I think it's important not to talk about attacking Iraq or the use of military force against Iraq. What is important is to reach a broad consensus on the importance of regime change in Baghdad and that's really what the focus of our policy is at the moment. QUESTION: If the U.S. attacks Iraq, will the prospects of attacks by Islamic fundamentalists increase? U/S BOLTON: I don't believe that Saddam Hussein's regime has ever been really faithful to Islam. I think he is a clever and cynical politician. I think he has attempted to use Islam to inflame opinion against the United States and against Israel. He certainly tried that tactic during the Persian Gulf War in 1991 in an attempt to divert interest from what he was actually doing by invading Kuwait. He failed then; I believe he will fail now. I don't think Saddam Hussein's regime has the slightest thing to do with religious Islam. I think this is a secular and highly autocratic government. I think he's just doing what he feels he needs to do in propaganda terms to protect it. And for that reason I don't think that there's any greater danger to the United States if the regime in Baghdad changes. Quite to the contrary. I think a number of leaders around the world would draw the conclusion that the aggressive pursuit of weapons of mass destruction is not in their interest. And I hope it would have a dissuading and deterring effect on a number of other regimes. QUESTION: Germany and Russia and many European countries don't support an attack on Iraq. Even in the U.K., and even in your country, objections are increasing. Will the attitude of such countries and your country affect Bush's decision? U/S BOLTON: The President's responsibility ultimately is to protect the American people. He has the constitutional responsibility as Commander-in-Chief to take the steps necessary to keep America's innocent civilian population safe. He is obviously consulting very broadly now both domestically and internationally. I expect that process will continue. And while it is true that there have not been widespread public statements in support of the use of military force, privately many governments around the world tell us that they understand what is necessary here. And I think that support will grow as we spread the message about Iraq's programs to acquire weapons of mass destruction, which threaten not only his own people but our friends and allies in the region. QUESTION: When will the attack start? In this year? U/S BOLTON: Let me just say again, there's no decision on the use of military force, so it would be imprudent to speculate about it. I think Saddam should worry about regime change happening in a wide variety of ways. There's enormous popular dissatisfaction with his rule. The economy of Iraq, which once had very considerable revenues from it oil exports, is a wreck. There are large parts of the country in the Kurdish areas in the north and northeast that are no longer under his effective control. So I think there's widespread evidence that he is vulnerable, and that the people of Iraq would benefit greatly if he found a new line of work. QUESTION: A recent Pentagon report did not rule out the possibility of nuclear attack. Is it possible that nuclear weapons will be used against Iraq? U/S BOLTON: Well, again, since there's no decision on the use of military force, there's no decision on exactly how it would be carried out. But I think the important message for Saddam to learn is that he would be very poorly advised to even consider using any of his weapons of mass destruction against the United States or its friends or allies. We gave him that message during the Persian Gulf Crisis of 1990-91. It's important that he understand that message again, because the use of weapons of mass destruction can only have terrible consequences for everybody involved. QUESTION: When the United States began to attack Afghanistan, Japan passed a new law and began to support the U.S. military. If the U.S. attacks Iraq, will the Bush administration request the same support from Japan? U/S BOLTON: Let me say first, we have welcomed and been very appreciative of the support that Japan has provided in the campaign against terrorism and the operations inside Afghanistan. Since we've made no decision on the question of military force, we've not put any question to the government of Japan, but there are serious consultations with the government underway to explain the threat that we see in Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program, and we're eager to answer concerns and questions that the government of Japan has-both the administration and members of Parliament. I think it's important that the United States explain clearly what our concerns are so that everyone can judge the severity of the threat that Saddam Hussein poses. That's what we're really in the process of doing. QUESTION: Offering the same support to an attack on Iraq is difficult under the Japanese constitution. If Japan declines to offer the level of support that the Bush administration requests, will this lead to deterioration in U.S.-Japan relations? U/S BOLTON: I think that the U.S.-Japan alliance is very, very solid, and we recognize the circumstances embodied in Japan's constitution and the ongoing political discussion in Japan about the appropriate role that its military forces would take. There won't under any circumstances be an effort to ask Japan to do something that it would find offensive to its constitution. That simply would not be a request that we would ever make. I think our responsibility is to explain to the government and people of Japan the nature of the threat we see and the steps that we propose to take. And we are considering a variety of alternatives. That's one of the reasons we have consultations: to lay out our thinking on the subject, to get reactions from close friends and allies like Japan, and to try and take that into account. So we're in a kind of an iterative process now in these discussions, and we welcome the opportunity for this close consultation with Japan. It's very important to hear opinions here and for us to be able to take them into account. QUESTION: President Bush said that North Korea was an evil country like Iraq. Is it possible that the U.S. will attack North Korea in the near future for the same reason that it is threatening to attack Iraq? U/S BOLTON: Well, I think the President stated our policy on North Korea very clearly: We support President Kim Dae Jung's Sunshine Policy; we're prepared to talk to North Korea on any subject, anytime, anyplace; we're prepared to provide and are providing substantial humanitarian assistance to the government of North Korea. At the same time, we are very concerned about North Korea's programs involving weapons of mass destruction. Both what they're doing in terms of their indigenous capacity and in terms of their outward proliferation with other rogue states, such as Iran and Iraq. That's a matter that's of grave concern to us, and I think should be of grave concern to countries in North Korea's neighborhood, including Japan. We have been having consultations on the question of North Korea, as we do in our general discussion with Japan on arms control and non-proliferation issues. And we've been exchanging views, I think, quite productively on that subject. The issue really is for when North Korea wants to have a serious discussion with us, as President Bush has repeatedly offered, so we can begin to address these very serious non-proliferation issues with them. QUESTION: Thank you. U/S BOLTON: Thank you. (end transcript) (Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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