The US, supported by Britain, plans a new UN resolution endorsing decisions by Iraqi leaders and the Bush administration to establish a provisional government in Baghdad in June, Security Council diplomats said,
The Iraqi Governing Council is due to present a timetable to the UN for a transition to sovereignty by Dec. 15, although envoys said on Tuesday this may be submitted well before that date. The US then wants the 15-member UN council to endorse the schedule in a resolution, hopefully before the end of the year.
One motive for another resolution, despite all the negotiating entailed, is to make sure the UN returns its political staff to Iraq, the diplomats said.
This in turn might encourage more countries to join in the reconstruction and security arrangements after a US-led civilian administration winds down and an interim Iraqi government takes power next June, they added.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Monday left open the possibility of a new Security Council resolution. "Whether any further UN action might be required as we execute this plan in the form of another UN resolution or not, that all remains to be seen," he said.
But he emphasized that it was "time now with this new plan for the UN to determine whether or not circumstances will permit it to play a more active role inside the country."
Responding to the pressure, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he would soon name a special representative to replace Sergio Vieira de Mello, killed when the UN headquarters in Baghdad was bombed on Aug. 19.
Some 22 people lost their lives, prompting Annan to pull all foreign staff out of Baghdad.
But Annan was careful not to predict a date for the return of UN political staff, saying they might operate across borders or outside of Iraq.
UN officials said a new representative might not play an important role initially but could have major responsibilities after June in helping to write a new Iraqi constitution and give election advice.
Annan, as well as France and Germany, had tried to convince the US to include a timetable for restoring Iraqi sovereignty in a resolution adopted by the 15-nation UN Security Council on Oct. 16. That measure set up a multinational force but drew few additional troops.
The US argued then that Iraqis needed first to draft a constitution and hold elections. But facing a mounting death toll, the Bush administration last week decided a transfer of power could be accomplished in June, although US and other foreign troops would stay in the country longer.
A string of rape and assault allegations against the son of Norway’s future queen have plunged the royal family into its “biggest scandal” ever, wrapping up an annus horribilis for the monarchy. The legal troubles surrounding Marius Borg Hoiby, the 27-year-old son born of a relationship before Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s marriage to Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon, have dominated the Scandinavian country’s headlines since August. The tall strapping blond with a “bad boy” look — often photographed in tuxedos, slicked back hair, earrings and tattoos — was arrested in Oslo on Aug. 4 suspected of assaulting his girlfriend the previous night. A photograph
The US deployed a reconnaissance aircraft while Japan and the Philippines sent navy ships in a joint patrol in the disputed South China Sea yesterday, two days after the allied forces condemned actions by China Coast Guard vessels against Philippine patrol ships. The US Indo-Pacific Command said the joint patrol was conducted in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone by allies and partners to “uphold the right to freedom of navigation and overflight “ and “other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace.” Those phrases are used by the US, Japan and the Philippines to oppose China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the
‘GOOD POLITICS’: He is a ‘pragmatic radical’ and has moderated his rhetoric since the height of his radicalism in 2014, a lecturer in contemporary Islam said Abu Mohammed al-Jolani is the leader of the Islamist alliance that spearheaded an offensive that rebels say brought down Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and ended five decades of Baath Party rule in Syria. Al-Jolani heads Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is rooted in Syria’s branch of al-Qaeda. He is a former extremist who adopted a more moderate posture in order to achieve his goals. Yesterday, as the rebels entered Damascus, he ordered all military forces in the capital not to approach public institutions. Last week, he said the objective of his offensive, which saw city after city fall from government control, was to
IVY LEAGUE GRADUATE: Suspect Luigi Nicholas Mangione, whose grandfather was a self-made real-estate developer and philanthropist, had a life of privilege The man charged with murder in the killing of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare made it clear he was not going to make things easy on authorities, shouting unintelligibly and writhing in the grip of sheriff’s deputies as he was led into court and then objecting to being brought to New York to face trial. The displays of resistance on Tuesday were not expected to significantly delay legal proceedings for Luigi Nicholas Mangione, who was charged in last week’s Manhattan killing of Brian Thompson, the leader of the US’ largest medical insurance company. Little new information has come out about motivation,
RSS