NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

Blix paints mixed picture of Iraq

14 Feb, 2003 10:06 PM6 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article




UNITED NATIONS - Chief UN arms inspector Hans Blix has accused Iraq of omissions and violations in its arms declarations but has refrained from declaring that Baghdad had utterly failed to comply, providing ammunition to those for and against US war plans.

In a report to the UN Security Council this
morning, Blix told 10 foreign ministers there was no evidence Iraq had banned weapons of mass destruction, although he could not exclude this. And he questioned some of the intelligence Secretary of State Colin Powell had delivered to the council last week.

With US and British forces massed in the Gulf region for a possible invasion of Iraq, Blix told Iraq to "squarely tackle" serious questions on its stocks of anthrax, the nerve agent VX and long-range missiles, some of which he said were an outright violation of UN resolutions.

But unlike his previous harsh report, Blix steered a course which provided reasons to Security Council members, such as France, which want inspections to be expanded and the United States and Britain, which say war may be the only recourse to force Iraq to disarm.

Powell accused Iraq of playing tricks on the United Nations and said the inspection process could not go on endlessly.

"We cannot allow this process to be endlessly strung out," he said, mocking Baghdad's claim that it is cooperating with inspectors and disputing the anti-war argument that inspections should continue even without full Iraqi compliance.

French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said inspections needed more time. "The use of force is not justified at this time. There is an alternative to war -- disarming Iraq through inspections," he said to loud applause, unusual in the staid council gallery.

And with analysts predicting the United States would invade Iraq in mid-March, de Villepin proposed the 15-nation Security Council should hold another ministerial meeting on March 14.

Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov agreed and said inspections were proceeding smoothly and "moving in the right direction." He said "force can be resorted to, but only when all other remedies have been exhausted."

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan called for more inspections but Spanish Foreign Minister Ana Palacio sided with Washington, saying Iraq had not cooperated and the council would have to assume its responsibilities.

Several other members, including Mexico, tried not to take sides but Chile backed France's position. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the real issue was "how we deal with proliferators elsewhere across the globe" if Iraq were allowed to defy the United Nations.

Mohamed ElBaradei, in charge of nuclear arms inspectors, told the council a number of issues were still under investigation but declared again he found no weapons.

"We have to date found no evidence of ongoing prohibited nuclear or nuclear-related activities in Iraq," said ElBaradei, head of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency.

The most serious new violation by Iraq Blix presented on Friday was regarding its long-range missiles, which he said Baghdad had tested beyond the range permitted by the Security Council. Blix said he would tell Iraq they were "proscribed" as well as some of the engines used in them.

A panel of six independent experts Blix organised this week determined that Iraq's Al Samoud 2 missile project is illegal because its range exceeds the 93-mile limit first set down in a 1991 Security Council resolution.

Blix said that an arms declaration submitted by Iraq in December omitted data needed to account for past stocks of anthrax, the nerve agent VX as well as on long-range missiles

"Although I can understand that it may not be easy for Iraq in all cases to provide the evidence needed, it is not the task of the inspectors to find it," he said. "Iraq itself must squarely tackle this task and avoid belittling the questions."

Blix also cast doubt on some intelligence submitted by Powell. He questioned a section of Powell's evidence to the Security Council on Feb. 5, saying that two satellite images shown in his presentation did not prove that Iraq was clearing the site of forbidden munitions.

"The reported movement of munitions at the site could just as easily have been a routine activity as a movement of proscribed munitions in anticipation of an imminent inspection," Blix said.

Hours before the inspectors were due to speak, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein issued a decree banning the import and production of weapons of mass destruction, which will be followed up by legislation.

This had been requested by the council for a decade and recently by Blix, along with U-2 spy plane overflights and private interviews with scientists, which Baghdad has conceded.

Blix said he could not say how many weapons of mass destruction, if any, Iraq had, saying he had only found so far a small number of empty chemical munitions.

"One must not jump to the conclusion that they exist," Blix said. "However, that possibility is also not excluded. If they exist, they should be presented for destruction. If they do not exist, credible evidence to that effect should be presented."

As the inspectors reported, the US military said aircraft taking part in U.S.-British patrols attacked Iraqi missile systems in the southern "no-fly" zone on Friday, the fifth strike on Iraqi targets in a week.

On financial markets, US stocks added to gains in late morning trading with some traders speculating the Blix report meant war was not imminent but later ran out of steam as fears returned. Oil prices rose to two-year highs on war fears.

Millions of people were expected to take to the streets of towns and cities around the world at the weekend to demonstrate against a looming U.S.-led war on Iraq in the biggest peace protests since the Vietnam war. More than 100,000 anti-war activists turned out in Melbourne to kick off the protests.

At issue is whether the United States and Britain can follow up Friday's meeting with a fresh UN resolution implicitly authorising war amid deepening rifts not only on the Security Council, but also within NATO and the European Union.

A resolution could be circulated as early as this weekend but most diplomats believe next week is more likely.

France, Russia and China, who have veto power in the 15-member Council, as well as Germany and other members, want to beef up inspections, triple the number of arms experts and send in UN security guards to "freeze" suspected sites.

So far most council members support them but the United States and Britain have just begun lobbying with Powell meeting council members in separate groups after the public meeting.

The United States and Britain hope to get the minimum nine positive votes required for adoption of a resolution and possibly risk a veto. France is conducting a similar lobbying effort in hopes a US move toward war will not get the minimum votes and spare it a veto.

- REUTERS

Herald feature: Iraq

Iraq links and resources

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

World

Ukraine says Russia launched largest drone, missile attack of war

09 Jul 07:42 AM
Premium
World

Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot shares anti-Semitic posts on X

09 Jul 07:19 AM
World

Study: Climate change made European heatwave up to 4C hotter

09 Jul 05:07 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from World

Ukraine says Russia launched largest drone, missile attack of war

Ukraine says Russia launched largest drone, missile attack of war

09 Jul 07:42 AM

The latest strike beat a previous Russian record of 550 drones and missiles.

Premium
Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot shares anti-Semitic posts on X

Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot shares anti-Semitic posts on X

09 Jul 07:19 AM
 Study: Climate change made European heatwave up to 4C hotter

Study: Climate change made European heatwave up to 4C hotter

09 Jul 05:07 AM
Teen attack at Brazil school kills child, injures two more

Teen attack at Brazil school kills child, injures two more

09 Jul 03:43 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP