WASHINGTON, May 9: The United States presented a resolution in the UN Security Council on Friday, demanding a prolonged stay in Iraq as an “occupying power” and the lifting of sanctions which would allow the use of Iraqi oil money for funding the country’s reconstruction.
The resolution, formally introduced by the US Ambassador John Negroponte, proposes only a limited role for the United Nations, despite an earlier promise by President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair to give the world body a “vital role.”
The US resolution also seeks to lift economic and trade sanctions imposed on Saddam Hussein’s government after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, and to phase out the oil-for-food programme instituted in 1996 to help ordinary Iraqis cope with the embargoes.
An arms embargo would be maintained.
The long-awaited draft resolution outlines a US vision for postwar Iraq sharply at odds with that of several Security Council members, particularly Russia and France.
Ambassador Negroponte asked the council members to support the eight-page US blueprint for Iraq because he said it was designed to bring peace and stability to the war-ravaged country.
Diplomatic observers, however, predict tough negotiations within the council over the US resolution. But they also acknowledge that there will be no replay of the pre-war battles in the council that pitched the United States against some of its European allies.
“The war in Iraq is over and America is the winner,” a representative of one of the 15-member nations of the Security Council told Dawn. “Besides, this is not a take it or leave it resolution. There’s room for negotiations,” he added.
The United States has already started lobbying to win over the council members to the resolution. Secretary of State Colin Powell is reported to have spoken with the leaders of some member nations, including Pakistan, asking them to support the US move. Pakistan is currently presiding over the council’s proceedings as one of the 10 rotating members.
On Thursday, the United States and Britain sent a joint letter to the council’s president, Pakistan’s Ambassador Munir Akram, acknowledging their responsibilities and obligations under international law “as occupying powers.”
The letter marks the first time the United States has referred to its role in Iraq as an “occupying power,” a status that entails wide-ranging responsibilities under the Geneva Convention. Until now, Washington has avoided the term, calling itself a “liberating force.”
Although the two “occupying powers” seek an initial UN authorization to rule Iraq for a year, under the proposal the 12-month “authority” would be renewed automatically unless the Security Council decided otherwise. Since the United States and Britain both have veto powers, they could block any attempt to make them leave Iraq, which means that they can continue to rule the Arab state for as long as they want.
The American draft calls on the UN secretary general to appoint a special coordinator to work with US and British authorities and the Iraqi people to restore and establish “national and local institutions for representative governance.” The coordinator also would promote the delivery of humanitarian aid, the return of refugees, reconstruction, human rights, legal and judicial reform and rebuilding of an Iraqi police force.
Lifting sanctions immediately and phasing out oil-for-food over a four-month period will take Iraq’s oil wealth out of the hands of the United Nations and put it under the control of Washington and London. Under the resolution, the money from oil sales would be used for humanitarian goods, reconstruction, civil administration and the continued disarmament of Iraq.
