U.S. Cites Cooperation by Iraq on Arms Curbs

For the first time since the U.N. began dismantling Iraq’s weapons programs after the Persian Gulf War, the United States is prepared to recognize significant cooperation by Baghdad in reducing its illegal arsenal, U.S. Ambassador Bill Richardson said Monday.

“One has to acknowledge progress that has been made” in curbing Iraq’s nuclear warfare capability and in Baghdad’s adherence to an agreement with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan that has provided weapons inspectors access to government sites previously off limits, Richardson told reporters here.

Despite the acknowledgment, the U.S. and the U.N. Security Council still oppose any relaxation of sanctions against Iraq. On Monday, as expected, the Security Council turned aside an appeal by Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed Said Sahaf to lift the embargo.

Richardson said the U.S. also continues to oppose any change in the demanding program of U.N. weapons inspections there, citing insufficient cooperation in the elimination of Iraq’s long-range missiles and biological and chemical weapons.

But diplomats here said the U.S. has been pushed toward a more moderate stance by an emerging majority on the council that favors some official recognition of Baghdad’s partial compliance as an incentive for the Iraqi government to continue to cooperate with weapons inspectors.

That incentive could come in a resolution or statement by the Security Council later this week, officials here said. Russia already has such a measure on the table, prompting a counterproposal by the U.S.

Sahaf was given the unusual opportunity to address the council in an informal, closed session during its semi-annual sanctions review. Those present said there was virtually no support for his call for an immediate end to the embargo.

Russia did propose a resolution recognizing the elimination of Iraq’s atomic weapons program and lowering the intensity of U.N. inspections of nuclear-capable facilities. The Russians claimed the backing of France, China, Brazil, Sweden and Portugal for the measure, while French Ambassador Alain Dejammet suggested that there might already be a majority on the 15-member council for it.

In an effort to head off the Russians, the United States offered an alternative that also would acknowledge Baghdad’s cooperation on some disarmament fronts but would delay for six months any consideration of a change in the inspection system.

Negotiations on a compromise version of the two measures were underway and are expected to continue for days, diplomats said.

Neither plan would affect the ongoing U.N. investigation of Iraq’s chemical, biological and missile programs, which has been the source of most of the conflict between Baghdad and the world body in the last six months.

In an April 16 report to the Security Council, chief U.N. weapons inspector Richard Butler said there had been “virtually no progress” in those areas over the last six months because Iraq resumed cooperating with inspectors only last month, after the agreement negotiated by Annan.

Under the cease-fire that ended the Gulf War in 1991, Iraq must eliminate its nuclear, chemical and biological warfare capabilities and its long-range missiles before the Security Council can lift sanctions, which are blamed for widespread hardship among ordinary Iraqis, though not necessarily members of the ruling elite. Even after those weapons have been destroyed, the U.N. is supposed to maintain a continuing presence to ensure Iraq does not rebuild its arsenal.

On Monday, the council divided along familiar lines. Russia, China and France highlighted areas where Iraq complied with U.N. mandates and urged rewards as incentives to cooperate further. The United States emphasized examples of misleading and uncooperative behavior by Iraqi officials.

For the first time, however, the U.S. seemed ready to acknowledge some forward movement by the Iraqi government. In his public assessment of the situation, Richardson’s comments also were notably lacking in the harsh rhetoric he employed in the tense weeks before Annan’s trip to Baghdad, although one official who attended the closed-door meeting of the council said Richardson was much tougher in his remarks there.

Those looking to reward Iraq cited the latest report of U.N. inspectors from the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, which has conducted the investigation of Iraq’s postwar nuclear weapons capacity.

After 1,250 inspections, the agency concluded that there is no further evidence of ongoing atomic weapons research, although the report did say some requested data still had not been furnished by the Iraqis.

The report feeds Russian efforts to change the nature of U.N. nuclear inspections from aggressive attempts to dig out information to a more passive monitoring system.

Butler’s report on missiles, chemicals and germ warfare, however, provides a counterweight by citing Iraq’s record of obfuscation and misrepresentation in those weapons programs.

The situation improved after Annan’s visit to Baghdad, with investigators permitted into sites where they were never previously allowed, according to inspection reports.