e-Claire

I'm Cornfuzed

Asked in a BBC radio interview if there was legal authority for the [Iraq] war, Mr [Kofi] Annan replied: "I have stated clearly it was not in conformity with the security council, with the UN charter." He insisted there should have been a second UN resolution before the attack on Baghdad.

A while ago, I looked up the resolutions leading up to the war. Here lies a very imprecise precis of what I read: [a more detailed executive summary in in the extended entry. click "You want more?!?"] #660 -- [2 August 1990] Iraq; yer screwin' around with Kuwait -- knock it off! #661 -- [6 August 1990] Iraq; yer not leaving Kuwait -- we're cuttin' off yer $$$. Get outta there! #662 -- [9 August 1990] Iraq; don't be a moron -- calling it "annexing Kuwait" ain't gonna fly. #664 -- [18 August 1990] Iraq; stop molesting the diplomats and Red Cross nurses! #665 -- [25 August 1990] We're checkin' the ships to make sure you don't get any $$$. Leave Kuwait alone, we said! #666 -- [13 September 1990] Now we're gonna hafta find and fly in extra food! You're making a mess! Leave Kuwait alone!! #667 -- [16 September 1990] Stop raping the diplomats!! #669 -- [24 September 1990] Jordan is getting its pants twisted by the embargo. Gee. We'll look into that real soon now. #670 -- [25 September 1990] Now, gotdammit, Iraq!! You're being a paininneass!! Everybody, cut off their allowance $$$! #674 -- [29 October 1990] Iraq! How many times am I gonna hatfa tell you -- Leave your little brother Kuwait alone !!! #677 -- [28 November 1990] Not only are you hurting Kuwait -- now we're gonna hafta clean up after you trashing its records ?!? Whatdahellz the matter with you?!? #678 -- [29 November 1990] OK! That's it !! You're gettin' a whoopin'!! #687 -- [3 April 1991] Ok. You've had your whoopin'. Promise not to do it again. And no scaring the rest of the kids. Now give me that bat you were hitting him with. Right Now! Whaddya mean you "can't find it" ?!?! More precisely, in Resolution 687 [29 November 1990] Saddam agreed to a plan wherein he would tell what weapons he had and surrender them in return for US/allied forces not marching into Baghdad. He was given a 15 day deadline. In 2002, about 3,900 days after Saddam's deadline, the UN passed Resolution 1441 which gave him one [more] last chance to comply with the inspections. #1441 -- [8 November 2002] Ok. One last chance -- don't lie now. "Demands that Iraq confirm within seven days of notification its intention to comply fully..." Continued violations "will face serious consequences." Each of these Resolutions has in its first paragraph a reference invoking all the previous Resolutions. Resolution 678 gives all member States the directive "to use all necessary means to uphold and implement resolution 660" [kick Iraq out of Kuwait (done) ] "and all subsequent relevant resolutions and to restore international peace and security in the area." It doesn't seem like tortured reasoning to call #687 and #1441 "subsequent relevant resolutions." So, GenSec Anon, I see how the US has not violated UN law by invading Iraq and taking out the trash. The UN's version of the resolutions quoted above and below is in pdf form 1990 and 1991 More detailed version below the fold:

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