The following is an archived copy of a message sent to a Discussion List run by the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
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Dear List, It seems that the Bush administration is insisting on getting a new SC resolution against Iraq, which it can use to attack Iraq for any reason, thus showing its "great respect" for the "credibility of the UN". So far, the UK has expressed open support. France, in its usual habit, is shifting towards supporting a US resolution. China is quiet about that, while insisting on Iraq's full compliance with SC resolutions. The only obstacle so far seems to be Russia. So far, Russia has opposed the idea of having a new resolution at the SC, insisting that the existing ones have the necessary mechanism for making sure that Iraq will comply. But with all what the US may offer Russia (never forget the price paid in 1990), no one can be sure... In the best of cases, Russia will abstain from voting, and the SC resolution will be adopted. This again raises the issue of lthe egality of SC resolutions. In previous discussions, it has been suggested that the abstention of a permanent member does not render a resolution illegal, since the Charter does not require the concurring vote of ALL permanent members. Just to make my point clear about this issue, the internet site of the United Nations states the following: "Each Council member has one vote. Decisions on procedural matters are made by an affirmative vote of at least nine of the 15 members. Decisions onsubstantive matters require nine votes, including the concurring votes of all five permanent members. This is the rule of "great Power unanimity", often referred to as the "veto" power." http://www.un.org/Docs/scinfo.htm#BACKGROUND I believe that that is an issue that should be followed up by anti-sanctions movement regarding the legality of the original attacks against Iraq, the formation of UNMOVIC and any coming resolution adopted in the same way. Best HZ _________________________________________________________ Only at Maktoob. Send your Arabic email without a need for an Arabic Operating System. http://www.maktoob.com/ _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk