Iraq's foreign minister accused the UN of failing to rescue his country from Saddam Hussein's 35-year "murderous tyranny." He urged the world body not to fail Iraq again and to return to help build a democratic nation.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said Tuesday the Iraqi Governing Council understood "the devastating losses that the UN suffered" but said the world body needed to return to play an expanded role in helping to establish a provisional Iraqi government in June, draft a constitution, and prepare for general elections by the end of 2005.
PHOTO: AP
The UN has always worked in "war-torn regions and crisis areas -- and Iraq is one of them," he stressed.
But Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he needed "much greater clarity" on what the Iraqis and the US-led coalition expect of the UN. That would help, Annan said, to gauge whether the job was worth the risk to UN staff.
Annan pulled all UN international staff out of Iraq in October after two bombings at UN headquarters in Baghdad and a series of attacks on humanitarian organizations. The first bombing on Aug. 19 killed 22 people, including top UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello.
Annan presented the Security Council with a report -- issued last week -- in which he said Iraq remained too dangerous to reopen the Baghdad UN office. Instead, he said, the world body would open an Iraq office in Nicosia, Cyprus, and an annex in Amman, Jordan, with staff traveling to Iraq as needed. The operation will be under the leadership of newly named acting envoy Ross Mountain.
But Zebari questioned whether that plan could be effective.
"The United Nations is the key forum for collective international action to help us achieve our goals of restructuring and democratizing our country," he told the Security Council. "Your help and expertise cannot be effectively delivered from Cyprus or Amman."
"We are ready and willing to help provide whatever security is required to see it return to Iraq," he said, adding later that "the Interior Ministry can provide whatever aid or help is needed to improve security for the UN."
Zebari invited Mountain, the new UN envoy, to visit Baghdad and discuss the UN's role with the Governing Council.
But Annan said he wasn't sure Zebari was "in a position to offer that security," though he would be happy if he could. He discussed the security offer and the UN role with Zebari at a private meeting late Tuesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, Zebari paid tribute to the UN and its humanitarian relief efforts that helped millions of Iraqis during recent years, but also accused the world body of failing to take action to oust Saddam.
"One year ago, the Security Council was divided between those who wanted to appease Saddam Hussein and those who wanted to hold him accountable," he said. "The United Nations as an organization failed to help rescue the Iraqi people from a murderous tyranny that lasted over 35 years. Today we are unearthing thousands of victims in horrifying testament to that failure."
"The UN must not fail the Iraqi people again," Zebari said.
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