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U.N. hears report on Iraqi weapons compliance
U.S.: Inspectors show 'pattern of concealment'
June 3, 1998
UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- The U.N. Security
Council spent Wednesday behind closed
doors, listening to a presentation from the United
Nations' chief weapons inspector, Richard Butler,
on Iraq's compliance with demands to dismantle its
weapons of mass destruction.
Bill Richardson, U.S. ambassador to the United
Nations, said Butler outlined a "pattern of
concealment" by Iraq of its weapons program, and
that inspectors "produced a devastating blow to
Iraq's credibility."
Butler "produced documents [and] charts that
catalogue the gaps and inconsistencies in Iraqi
claims in the chemical, biological and other fields,"
Richardson said. He also said Butler provided new
and "disturbing" information on Iraq's ballistic
missile program.
Butler's review of Iraqi compliance with U.N.
demands is to continue before the council
Thursday morning.
Iraqi official: We have complied
On Tuesday, Iraqi Foreign Minster Mohammad Saeed
al-Sahaf was given the same opportunity to brief the
Security Council. According to documents obtained by
Reuters, al-Sahaf told council diplomats, "We do not
have any prohibited weapon components, production
equipment or precursors thereof.
"I also like to confirm that we have provided
[weapons inspectors] with all the documents we
have, and we do not conceal any document of the
type sought," he said.
U.N. weapons inspectors must certify that Iraq is
free of illegal weapons before the council will lift
sanctions imposed in August 1990 after Iraqi troops
invaded Kuwait.
Iraqi officials insist they have cooperated and
dismantled proscribed weapons. Russia, France,
China and some other U.N. countries have been
pressuring Butler to back up his claims to the
contrary.
Butler outlines 'road map' for lifting
sanctions
Butler, who plans to visit Baghdad June 11-15, said
before Wednesday's meeting that he intended to give the
council a "road map" showing what remains to be
done for Iraq to comply fully with U.N. disarmament
resolutions. That information would then be given
to the Iraqis.
However, Butler is not expected to give the Iraqis
detailed lists of exactly what he is looking for,
fearing that Iraq would then withhold information
about matters that weapons inspectors have not
yet discovered.
Meanwhile, in Iraq, U.N. teams are continuing their
inspections. On Wednesday, they went to a site
about an hour north of Baghdad, looking for
confirmation that Iraq had actually destroyed and
buried its weapons of mass destruction, as it has
claimed.
Iraqi officials have led U.N. teams to areas they say
hold remnants of dismantled weapons. The teams
are also making surprise inspections of sites where
they suspect Iraq may still be hiding forbidden
material.
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