U.N. nuclear monitors went to a remote uranium mining site in one of five inspections conducted Tuesday, a marked expansion of the U.N. field operation. Still, more inspectors were flying to Iraq later in the day.
In a related development, Iraq said Tuesday the United States had engaged in "unprecedented extortion" by taking the only copy of Baghdad's arms declaration to the U.N. Security Council, claiming Washington might alter the report as a cover for launching a military attack.
The United States took the only copy of the document from the United Nations on Monday to make copies in Washington for distribution to the other four permanent members of the Security Council — Britain, France, Russia and China.
"This is unprecedented extortion in the history of the United Nations, when it (U.S.) forced the president of the Security Council to give it the real copy of Iraq's declaration ... in contradiction with the agreement by all member of Security Council on Dec. 6," the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said, according to AP.
"Above all of this, this American behavior aims to play with the United Nations' documents with the aim of finding a cover for aggression against Iraq...," the statement added.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry statement claimed Washington would not hand over copies to the other permanent Security Council members until the United States was finished "studying it first and possibly forging what it wants to forge."
On his part, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Monday that Iraq's weapons declaration to the United Nations should not be prejudged, and it could take weeks to reach conclusions about the 12,000 pages of documents.
"It's the subject of intense scrutiny at the present time on the part of a multi-departmental and interagency team," Rumsfeld told reporters traveling with him to the Horn of Africa and Qatar. U.S. agencies including the CIA and the Pentagon were to evaluate the report, he said.
"I think the thing to do is to not prejudge it, be patient and expect that it will take days and weeks probably to go over, and come to some judgments about it," Rumsfeld said.
In Washington, a group of Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill challenged the Bush administration to prove its assertions by releasing intelligence reports.
"If the administration has evidence that counters the Iraqi disclosures, they should provide such evidence to the United Nations," said Rep. Dennis Kucinich, an Ohio Democrat. "The administration does not do well if it bypasses the United Nations and prepares to engage in war no matter what the U.N. findings."
The huge Iraqi document appeared to contain the names of foreign arms suppliers. In the index, Iraq listed procurements for its nuclear programs as well as imported chemical precursors and foreign technical assistance for its chemicals weapons programs.
In London, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said it would be "naive" to think that President Saddam Hussein was likely to comply with the U.N. demands. The "implication" of resolution 1441 was that "if there is a breach and Saddam doesn't comply, then we are ready to take action," he told the Financial Times. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
