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Mexico, Canada edge closer to U.S. position...
U.S. neighbors both north and south are moving to ease the United Nations standoff that has arisen out off competing resolutions on disarming Iraq by the United States, Britain and Spain on one side and France and Germany on the other. Mexico appeared to be the first among a handful of undecided U.N. Security Council members to shift toward the U.S. position on Iraq, The Associated Press has learned. The change in policy for Mexico was first presented in a key address by Mexican President Vicente Fox on Tuesday and then outlined in a new and confidential foreign policy directive obtained by The Associated Press. We had Fox's speech yesterday... Canada, meanwhile offered a plan that could reconcile the bitter differences posed by the U.S.-British-Spanish resolution, which is seeking U.N. authorization for war, and a French-Russian-German proposal to continue weapons inspections at least into July. Canada has circulated a two-page proposal suggesting Iraq be given until the end of March to complete a list of remaining disarmament tasks identified by the inspectors. The council would then be asked to vote on whether Iraq was complying with its U.N. obligations, diplomats told AP. An end of March cut-off, followed by probably a month of argument and recrimination, ending in another cut-off another month or two down the road... A senior Bush Administration official said it was unlikely Russia would veto the U.S.-British-Spanish draft despite Moscow's repeated statements that it opposes war. I'd expect a "reluctant" abstention... There were signs Tuesday that Angola could be swayed to the U.S. position when Angolan Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins said he wanted more "dialogue with the United States to see how we can accommodate each other." I just felt a pain in my checkbook... Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2003-02-26 |
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