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Blair says US military should control post-Saddam Iraq
Tony Blair lined up staunchly behind George Bush last night in agreeing that the United States military should administer a post-Saddam Iraq before handing the country over to the United Nations. At a working dinner at the US President's Camp David retreat, the British Prime Minister backed Washington's plans to install General Jay Garner as civil governor for the country in the short term.

Mr Blair and Mr Bush agreed that a new UN Security Council resolution would be needed to authorise an interim UN administration and release funds for reconstruction – but only after the military situation stabilised.
What funds? Reconstruction funds can come from the oil; and if there's no new UN resolution, why the Iraqi Interim Authority and military governor will have to see to it that the money is spent properly.
The talks came amid growing controversy over the extent to which the UN should be involved in Iraq even during the conflict and, more importantly, once the fighting is over.

The current lack of consensus with France and Russia also meant that Britain and the US were in no mood to go "rushing" back to the UN, the Prime Minister told reporters.
Sometime in 2005 would be fine.
Before he flew to Washington, Mr Blair said in the House of Commons that the interim arrangements for Iraq had to be robust enough to ensure that American and British troops "did not give their lives in vain".

Downing Street said that a new UN resolution for reconstruction was less of a priority than a resolution giving Kofi Annan, the secretary general, powers to run Iraq's £6.35bn-a-year oil-for-food programme.
No, no, no! Kofi can't feed a parking meter properly let alone run the programme.
The secretary general is anxious to replenish UN coffers relaunch the programme under which Iraq was allowed to import food, medicines and other civilian supplies using revenue from its oil sales. Russia and Syria have balked on sovereignty grounds, noting that, for now, the Iraqi government remains in place. With some French backing, the two governments also fear that approving the resolution would confer some legitimacy on the US-UK armed attacks.
Fine, no resolution, have it your way. We'll manage.
Some members of the Bush administration would prefer there to be no UN involvement in Iraq once the conflict is over and are keen that the French and Russians do not benefit from lucrative civil contracts.

However, Mr Blair insisted yesterday that the President himself was committed to a UN administration at some point. "It is very clear that we should make sure that any post-conflict Iraqi administration has the full endorsement of the UN. It actually releases funds. It allows the international financial institutions to operate in a better and more effective way," Mr Blair told MPs at Prime Minister's Questions.
Master politican, can actually talk about a "better and more effective" international institution without guffawing.
"American and British soldiers have put their lives on the line, and in some cases given their lives, for the liberation of Iraq and the disarmament of Saddam Hussein," he added. "We will obviously have to discuss the details of how we make the handover to civil administration in Iraq because it is important both to protect our own troops and make sure, frankly, that they did not give their lives in vain."
Hear hear!
Posted by: Steve White 2003-03-27
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=11943