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Hi folks I really think this key disarmament tasks stuff is critical right now. Here's a couple of letters. Wish I had the links for the articles, perhaps will add tonight. Best Mil Letter to FT Letter to Telegraph re Iraq's 'key disarmament tasks' LETTER TO FT Sir, Congratulations to Roula Khalaf and Mark Turner for noting that UN resolution 1284 requires the UN weapons inspectors to define Iraq's "key disarmament tasks". ('Blix expected to tell Iraq to destroy missiles', 22 February 2003, p. 6) This should be a critical element of the present inspection process. Paragraph 7 of Resolution 1284 states that 'what is required of Iraq for the implementation of each task shall be clearly defined and precise'. This was inserted into the Resolution in order to stop the US and UK from continually moving the goalposts, and to create a transparent, fixed process which might give Iraq an incentive to co-operate. Contrary to your report, however, these 'key disarmament tasks' are not required by 'the end of March': they should have been defined after 60 days of inspections resuming - on 27 January, in other words. Mr Turner and Ms Khalaf report that the US and UK are resisting suggestions to include the 'key disarmament tasks' in any new Resolution, 'amid fears that a list of tasks could be used to string out the process.' One can only conclude that Washington and London are responsible for the fact that the 'key disarmament tasks' were not produced on 27 January as required by Resolution 1284. US officials have done their best to rubbish the inspections process - Secretary of State Colin Powell stated on 22 January, 'Inspections will not work'. Every sign of Iraqi co-operation with inspectors is disparaged and discounted - President George W. Bush said on 6 February, 'The game is over', dismissing Iraqi compliance with inspectors' demands as 'another round of empty concessions'. Washington must not be allowed to block the implementation of a key element of Resolution 1284, and the development of a process whereby the status of Iraq's weapons programmes can be objectively assessed. Milan Rai LETTER TO TELEGRAPH Sir It is of the utmost importance that we understand clearly Iraq's disarmament duties. It is therefore regrettable that UN Resolution 1284 was misrepresented in a report. (22 February, p. 14) True, the Resolution does require UN weapons inspectors to draw up a list of 'key disarmament tasks to be completed by Iraq' - 'what is required of Iraq for the implementation of each task shall be clearly defined and precise', according to paragraph 7 of the Resolution. But this should have been done by 27 January (60 days after the resumption of inspections), not 'by the end of March' as stated in your report. If the weapons inspectors had defined the key disarmament tasks as required, we would now be well into a clearly defined process by which Iraq could prove it has been disarmed. It is essential that the 'unanswered questions' being set out by Dr Blix over the next few days are developed into clear and precise 'key disarmament tasks' by which to test Iraq, whether as a separate document, or as part of any new Resolution. The US and Britain appear to be resisting efforts to fulfil this critical element of Resolution 1284. Yet the 'authority of the UN' is at stake if the procedures laid down in the Resolution are flouted as the result of US pressure. Yours sincerely Milan Rai _______________________________________________ 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