Secretary General's Situation Report on Iraq

The situation in Iraq eleven years after the finish of the Gulf War is very serious. The Iraqi government has yet to comply fully with UN resolution 687, which was enacted at the end of hostilities in April of 1991. Eleven years of comprehensive economic sanctions have had a devastating effect on the Iraqi civilian population, and there is a growing movement among member states to have the sanctions lifted. The United States is pushing to have the sanctions regime altered significantly. Under the U.S. "smart sanctions" proposal, purely civilian goods would be taken off of the sanctions list but the Iraqi regime would still be prevented from importing goods that would help them build up their military or their Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) capability. This so called "smart sanctions" proposal is facing strong opposition by many members who believe that the sanctions program has been allowed to last too long already with deadly effects on the Iraqi population. Some permanent 5 members such as Russia and France have indicated that they could oppose any Security Council attempt to revise formally the Iraqi sanctions regime.

Since the devastating terrorist attacks of September 11th, there has been much discussion in the U.S. Bush administration of the need to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein from power using massive military force if necessary. The Bush Administration has identified Iraq as part of an "axis of evil" which also includes Iran and North Korea. Administration officials have publicly argued that in the four years since UNSCOM inspectors left Iraq in 1998, Iraq has probably been able to reconstitute much of its WMD and ballistic missile capability. Administration officials point out that Iraq could supply WMD capability to Al Qaeda or other terrorist networks bent on attacking the United States or U.S. interests. The Bush administration is now arguing in Security Council debates that Iraq must submit to rigorous WMD inspections in the very near future or the United States is prepared to use military force (even unilaterally) to deal with the Iraqi threat.

As Secretary General I have been asked by several members to bring these urgent matters to the attention of the Security Council. Members have asked that the following issues be explored in the upcoming Security Council debate on Iraq.

1. The devastating impact of UN economic sanctions (imposed by the Security Council in Resolution 661 and subsequent resolutions)

2. U.S. led efforts to enact "smart sanctions" which would greatly reduce the negative impact of sanctions on the Iraqi people

3. U.S. allegations regarding the threat of ongoing Iraqi WMD programs and U.S. demands for immediate rigorous and intrusive inspections on the ground in Iraq

4. The growing threat of U.S. use of military force to oust Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq