Post by bot on Jun 5, 2004 20:29:08 GMT -5
UN Urges Full Power Shift in Iraq
www.tehrantimes.com/Description.asp?Da=6/6/2004&Cat=4&Num=018
BAGHDAD (BBC) -- The United Nations envoy to Iraq says the U.S. will have to change its behaviour if a shift to sovereignty is to have any meaning.
Lakhdar Brahimi told the BBC that complete power must be handed over from the U.S. to the interim government.
Until now the U.S. administrator rather than the U.S.-appointed Iraqi governing council had held control, he said.
His comments follow a revised version of a Security Council resolution on Iraq from the U.S. and Britain.
The new draft states clearly that the U.S.-led multi-national force will leave if asked to by the Iraqi government.
Brahimi said further talks on the role and command of troops was needed.
"There is a need for a detailed discussion about what they are going to do, how these troops are going to behave, what is the chain of responsibility," he told Radio 4's Today program.
Brahimi also said sorry for calling Paul Bremer the dictator of Iraq earlier this week - it had been a tongue-in-cheek remark, he said.
Iraq's new Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari echoed Brahimi, telling the BBC that a sovereign government must have the power to influence any foreign military presence.
He had made his concerns clear when he addressed the Security Council on Thursday.
The new draft Security Council resolution reflects Zebari's comments and allows the interim administration to ask U.S.-led troops to leave, not just the government set to be elected next year.
It also stresses that the government will assume full responsibility.
"Now we need these multi-national forces to stay, it is an Iraqi need rather than a British or American one," Zebari told the BBC.
"But if you have a sovereign government you must decide, especially if these forces are staying there with your consent, at your invitation," he added.
Once Iraq had assumed full responsibility for security and developed its own army there would no longer be a need for British and American troops, he said.
Iraqi forces, under Iraqi control, would work in tandem with the multi-national force command to fight terrorism, stabilize the situation and confront security threats, he said.
Some council members, including France, China and Russia, had expressed reservations about two earlier drafts of the Resolution.
On Friday interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi praised the U.S.-led forces.
He said they would continue to guarantee security after the sovereignty transfer on 30 June.
However it has not changed the wording about the relationship between the new government and the multinational force - despite calls from France and other members to give Iraq a veto over military operations.
No date has been set for adoption of the resolution.
However U.S. officials have expressed confidence that only minor adjustments will be needed to secure approval in the council.
"We are making good progress," State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said. "I think we are moving toward a consensus."
The new draft was issued as George Bush announced his choice as the new U.S. ambassador to the UN.
He is John Danforth, a Republican former senator who has served as U.S. envoy to Sudan.
If confirmed by the Senate, Danforth would succeed John Negroponte, who has been chosen as ambassador to Iraq. DRAFT RESOLUTION ON IRAQ Maps out the handover to a sovereign Iraqi government by 30 June Provides for a US-led multinational force, with authority to take all necessary measures for security, while setting a date for the end of its mandate Grants Iraq full control over its own natural resources while temporarily maintaining international control over its oil revenue fund
www.tehrantimes.com/Description.asp?Da=6/6/2004&Cat=4&Num=018
BAGHDAD (BBC) -- The United Nations envoy to Iraq says the U.S. will have to change its behaviour if a shift to sovereignty is to have any meaning.
Lakhdar Brahimi told the BBC that complete power must be handed over from the U.S. to the interim government.
Until now the U.S. administrator rather than the U.S.-appointed Iraqi governing council had held control, he said.
His comments follow a revised version of a Security Council resolution on Iraq from the U.S. and Britain.
The new draft states clearly that the U.S.-led multi-national force will leave if asked to by the Iraqi government.
Brahimi said further talks on the role and command of troops was needed.
"There is a need for a detailed discussion about what they are going to do, how these troops are going to behave, what is the chain of responsibility," he told Radio 4's Today program.
Brahimi also said sorry for calling Paul Bremer the dictator of Iraq earlier this week - it had been a tongue-in-cheek remark, he said.
Iraq's new Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari echoed Brahimi, telling the BBC that a sovereign government must have the power to influence any foreign military presence.
He had made his concerns clear when he addressed the Security Council on Thursday.
The new draft Security Council resolution reflects Zebari's comments and allows the interim administration to ask U.S.-led troops to leave, not just the government set to be elected next year.
It also stresses that the government will assume full responsibility.
"Now we need these multi-national forces to stay, it is an Iraqi need rather than a British or American one," Zebari told the BBC.
"But if you have a sovereign government you must decide, especially if these forces are staying there with your consent, at your invitation," he added.
Once Iraq had assumed full responsibility for security and developed its own army there would no longer be a need for British and American troops, he said.
Iraqi forces, under Iraqi control, would work in tandem with the multi-national force command to fight terrorism, stabilize the situation and confront security threats, he said.
Some council members, including France, China and Russia, had expressed reservations about two earlier drafts of the Resolution.
On Friday interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi praised the U.S.-led forces.
He said they would continue to guarantee security after the sovereignty transfer on 30 June.
However it has not changed the wording about the relationship between the new government and the multinational force - despite calls from France and other members to give Iraq a veto over military operations.
No date has been set for adoption of the resolution.
However U.S. officials have expressed confidence that only minor adjustments will be needed to secure approval in the council.
"We are making good progress," State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said. "I think we are moving toward a consensus."
The new draft was issued as George Bush announced his choice as the new U.S. ambassador to the UN.
He is John Danforth, a Republican former senator who has served as U.S. envoy to Sudan.
If confirmed by the Senate, Danforth would succeed John Negroponte, who has been chosen as ambassador to Iraq. DRAFT RESOLUTION ON IRAQ Maps out the handover to a sovereign Iraqi government by 30 June Provides for a US-led multinational force, with authority to take all necessary measures for security, while setting a date for the end of its mandate Grants Iraq full control over its own natural resources while temporarily maintaining international control over its oil revenue fund