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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 000298 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL, PARM, UNSC, IZ SUBJECT: UN/IRAQ: IRAQ SENDS LETTER PRE-EMPTIVELY TAKING ISSUE WITH THE SECRETARY'S FEBRUARY 5 PRESENTATION 1. (U) IRAQI FM NAJI SABRI SUBMITTED THE FOLLOWING LETTER TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL (S/2003/132), CONCERNING THE U.S. PRESENTATION TO THE COUNCIL ON FEBRUARY 5. THE FULL TEXT OF THE LETTER FOLLOWS IN PARA 2. 2. (U) BEGIN TEXT. THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES HAS ANNOUNCED THAT IT HAS CALLED FOR A MEETING OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON 5 FEBRUARY 2003 AT WHICH UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE COLIN POWELL WILL PRESENT WHAT HAS BEEN DUBBED "EVIDENCE OF IRAQ'S POSSESSION OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION." THIS PLAY-ACTING HAS BECOME TRANSPARENT AFTER THE SUBMISSION BY THE UNITED STATES OF MORE THAN ONE REPORT FILLED WITH ALLEGATIONS AND ACCUSATIONS DEVOID OF ANY EVIDENCE TO SUBSTANTIATE THEM, SUCH AS THE REPORT ANNEXED TO THE SPEECH OF UNITED STATES PRESIDENT BUSH BEFORE THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON 12 SEPTEMBER 2002, ENTITLED "A DECADE OF DECEPTION AND DEFIANCE," AND THE REPORT OF THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY (CIA) OF OCTOBER 2002, ENTITLED "IRAQ'S WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION PROGRAMS." IN BOTH THOSE REPORTS, THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION ACCUSED IRAQ OF DEVELOPING WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION AT MORE THAN 50 SITES. BRITISH PRIME MINISTER TONY BLAIR HAS PLAYED A SUPPORTING ROLE IN THIS REGARD, PUBLISHING A SIMILAR REPORT IN OCTOBER 2002 IN WHICH HE CLAIMED THAT THERE EXISTED SPECIFIC SITES IN IRAQ AT WHICH WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION WERE BEING DEVELOPED. AFTER IRAQ ACCEPTED THE RETURN OF THE INSPECTORS ON 16 SEPTEMBER 2002 AND AGREED TO DEAL WITH SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION 1441 (2002), THE UNITED NATIONS MONITORING, VERIFICATION AND INSPECTION COMMISSION (UNMOVIC) AND THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY (IAEA) WERE REQUESTED TO ACCORD PRIORITY, IN RESUMING INSPECTIONS, TO SITES ALLEGED BY THE UNITED STATES AND BRITAIN TO BE DEVELOPING WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION PROGRAMMES. INSPECTION WORK BEGAN ON 27 NOVEMBER 2002. AFTER TWO MONTHS OF INTENSIVE INSPECTIONS INVOLVING THE USE OF STATE-OF-THE-ART EQUIPMENT FOR DETECTING ANY PROSCRIBED NUCLEAR, CHEMICAL OR BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY AND THE ANALYSIS OF WATER, SOIL AND AIR SAMPLES ALL OVER IRAQ DURING 518 TOURS OF INSPECTION COMPRISING ALL THE SITES THAT WERE THE OBJECT OF PRESIDENT BUSH'S AND PRIME MINISTER BLAIR'S ACCUSATIONS, AS WELL AS NUMEROUS OTHER SITES, INCLUDING RESIDENTIAL QUARTERS IN IRAQI CITIES, THE REPORT OF MESSRS. BLIX AND ELBARADEI, SUBMITTED TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON 27 JANUARY 2003, SUBSTANTIATED IRAQ'S DECLARATIONS AND CONSEQUENTLY CONFIRMED THAT THE REPORTS OF PRESIDENT BUSH AND PRIME MINISTER BLAIR WERE DEVOID OF TRUTH AND HAD BEEN DRAFTED IN ORDER TO DISTORT THE PICTURE OF IRAQ AND CREATE PRETEXTS FOR AGGRESSION AGAINST IRAQ AND AGAINST THE REGION AS A WHOLE. PERHAPS THIS FACT EXPLAINS THE URGENT REQUESTS ADDRESSED TO STATES BY MESSRS. BLIX AND ELBARADEI TO PROVIDE UNMOVIC AND IAEA WITH VERIFIABLE EVIDENCE OF ANY PROSCRIBED ACTIVITIES, SUBSTANCES OR MATERIALS IN IRAQ AND THE INSISTENCE OF STATES MEMBERS OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL THAT THOSE STATES WHICH ARE ALLEGING THAT IRAQ IS DEVELOPING WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION SUBMIT THEIR EVIDENCE TO UNMOVIC AND IAEA PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH 10 OF RESOLUTION 1441 (2002), WHICH READS, "REQUESTS ALL MEMBER STATES TO GIVE FULL SUPPORT TO UNMOVIC AND THE IAEA IN THE DISCHARGE OF THEIR MANDATES, INCLUDING BY PROVIDING ANY INFORMATION RELATED TO PROHIBITED PROGRAMMES OR OTHER ASPECTS OF THEIR MANDATES ..." ON THE BASIS OF THE ABOVE TEXT, CONTAINED IN THE SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION, WE REQUEST THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES, THROUGH YOU, TO SUBMIT IMMEDIATELY ITS ALLEGED EVIDENCE TO THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ENTRUSTED BY THE UNITED NATIONS WITH VERIFYING SUCH ALLEGATIONS, NAMELY UNMOVIC (IF THEY RELATE TO PROSCRIBED ACTIVITIES IN THE CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL OR MISSILE FIELDS) OR IAEA (IF THEY RELATE TO PROSCRIBED ACTIVITIES IN THE NUCLEAR FIELD), SO AS TO ENABLE THE TWO ORGANIZATIONS TO BEGIN THEIR INVESTIGATIONS IMMEDIATELY AND INFORM THE SECURITY COUNCIL AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF THE EXTENT TO WHICH THOSE ALLEGATIONS ARE CORRECT. IN THIS CONNECTION, WE CAUTION AGAINST USING THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OR THE SECURITY COUNCIL AS FORUMS FOR SPREADING FALSE ACCUSATIONS AND FABRICATED EVIDENCE IN OPEN DISREGARD FOR THE MECHANISMS PRESCRIBED BY THE SECURITY COUNCIL UNCLASSIFIED