You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Britain
Straw fury at French tactics
2003-03-14
France's threat to deploy its UN veto is making war with Iraq more — not less — likely by preventing the security council from enforcing its own decisions, Jack Straw said last night. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, the foreign secretary expressed dismay at what he had earlier called President Jacques Chirac's "extraordinary extortion position" in saying France would veto a second resolution whatever the circumstances. "Unfortunately, they appear to have made the decision not to enforce 1441," he said. "That renders it less likely that we get a peaceful outcome."
Quite.
He brushed aside any suggestion that war - possibly next week - would be illegal without a fresh resolution. He argued that if a resolution is lost then it does not exist - so the legal position reverts to resolution 1441 which threatens serious consequences if Iraq fails to comply with demands to disarm.
Serious consequences, apparently, is diplospeak for "do what we say, sucka, or we gonna bust a cap on you."
He also rejected Saddam's latest offer to prove he has destroyed his elusive stocks of VX nerve agent. "I have come to the dismal conclusion that for him it is really a game and it is trickling out the minimum concessions to buy more time." The foreign secretary told the Guardian that diplomacy could still produce a peaceful outcome, with the clock now running into next week.
I like the idea of Sammy going on Iraqi TV to say, in Arabic, that it was all his fault.
The US said yesterday it was prepared to wait until next week for a UN vote on a final ultimatum to Iraq, but might opt not to ask for a vote at all, if a security council majority continues to elude Washington. Only days after George Bush pledged to call for a vote, whether it might succeed or not, the administration said it would look at "all the options".
Is this more cover to keep Sammy from loosing chemical weapons at our guys?
The White House spokesman, Ari Fleischer, declared "the end is coming into sight" as more than 250,000 US and British troops in the region carried out final preparations for an invasion. B-2 Stealth bombers, likely to carry out the first raids of the campaign, left their Missouri bases yesterday. Hopes, too were fading last night for Britain's resolution after the crucial six undecided nations questioned whether the relatively short deadlines outlined in the proposal were realistic or only an excuse for war.
Take a guess, guys.
"The British proposal is not still at the point at which ... it satisfies our concerns," said Chilean ambassador Gabriel Valdes. Britain's United Nations ambassador, Jeremy Greenstock, met the crucial six undecided nations in a private meeting in an attempt to salvage a compromise. As Mr Straw spoke, the French foreign minister, Dominique de Villepin, also appeared conciliatory in the face of US-led vituperation. France is still open to any option that could solve the current crisis, he said. "We want a solution and we are looking for consensus within the security council. Everything must be tried to preserve the unity of the council and we are working towards that. France confirms its openness to seize all opportunities."
He realizes that the strident "we will veto regardless" puts them on the hook, and now he wants off.
But Mr de Villepin reiterated that Paris will not cross its red line: any second resolution must not contain an ultimatum that could lead to military action against Iraq. That was not reasonable, he insisted.
It's not reasonable if you're determined that Iraq isn't going to get whacked, regardless of what it does...
London's assault on the French position - "poisonous" the No 10 spokesman said - continued at a White House briefing. Ari Fleischer, the presidential spokesman, said that France had rejected the British "six tests" even before Baghdad had done so. "France has said they reject the logic of ultimatums. France also looked at the British proposal and they rejected it before Iraq rejected it. If that's not an unreasonable veto, what is?" he said.
Dominique is still on the hook.
In an attempt to woo Russia and the six swing states on the security council Mr Straw had earlier dropped the demand that Saddam state on Arabic TV that he would disarm. But he would still have to make a statement admitting his guilt.
No-o-o-o-o-o! Sammy has to allocute!!
Clare Short, the turncoat international development secretary, made a more conciliatory contribution, despite her weekend screed attack on Tony Blair's "reckless" conduct. She emerged to tell aides that she felt more positive about progress on the role of the UN and the prospects for the Middle East peace process.
"It was all PMS, really!"
Ms Short gave the impression of flailing abjectly rowing back from her weekend interview - telling BBC News she hopes the prime minister's battle to win a UN vote succeeds. Significantly, Gordon Brown, the chancellor and an ally of Ms Short's, took to the TV studios yesterday to back Mr Blair's position more energetically than at any time during the Iraqi crisis.
Posted by:Steve White

#6  Excellent article explaining the diplomacy as old maid, not poker... Chirac ends up with the old maid
http://66.27.50.74/cd_log_entries/2003/03/PlayingOldMaid.shtml
Posted by: Jim   2003-03-14 15:54:13  

#5  I was dissed yesterday, but Den Beste's post that dorf is referring to made me feel better about going the diplomatic route.

Yeah, Bush has been taking a beating from Chirac and Saddam, but compare this fight to a saloon brawl where the bad guys are breaking tables over, smashing chairs upon, and busting up bottles over the head of the good guy, who tries to talk his way out of the brawl. They then pause for applause, when the good guy stands up, wipes the blood off his lip, and says, "YOU GUYS just demolished the saloon. Where's everyone going to get their drinks NOW?"

THEN he kicks the shit out of the Iraqui.
Posted by: Ptah   2003-03-14 10:42:57  

#4  Screw the frogs. We'll get to them later.

Right now, we have bigger fish to fry. Let's stop worrying about the EU and go do the deed, NOW!

But - we WILL remember.

Monsieur Chirac, enjoy your "triumph" while you can. Payback is guaranteed to be a bitch...
Posted by: mojo   2003-03-14 10:17:02  

#3  jrosevear
That's the short version. See Den Beste for more words, same view.

http://66.27.50.74/cd_log_entries/2003/03/PlayingOldMaid.shtml

dorf
Posted by: Anonymous   2003-03-14 07:31:02  

#2  Paris has now said that they'll veto anything that could lead to war; e.g. anything reasonable. In other words, we've got our "unreasonable veto" and no actual vote is needed. All we need is another day or two of diplogames to make sure all the world understands what's happened here, and then we can send the balloon up and get on with things.
Posted by: jrosevear   2003-03-14 07:06:22  

#1  But Mr de Villepin reiterated that Paris will not cross its Maginot line: any second resolution must not contain an ultimatum that could lead to freedom for the Iraqi people. That was not reasonable, he insisted.

On the one hand I would like to see the weasels go on record by voting in support of Saddam at the UNSC. On the other if we are not going to get the votes, perhaps it would be better to fall back on 1441 and roll over Sammy with an M1A1 ourselves.
Posted by: RW   2003-03-14 01:46:23  

00:00