Article

2004-05-18 Iraq-Jordan

Iraq Says UN Must Reduce Reparations Paid from Oil

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Posted by Zenster 2004-05-18 1:16:57 PM|| || Front Page|| [11133 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Iraq can be bled white for all I care.

That'll help them build a free country.

Zenster -- the guy responsible for the crimes they're paying reparations for is in custody and facing trial. Let's not punish the innocent for his crimes.

Posted by Robert Crawford 2004-05-18 1:36:47 PM|| [http://www.kloognome.com] 2004-05-18 1:36:47 PM|| Front Page Top

#2 I understand this, Robert, but when all is said and done, Iraq must accept some of the consequences for offenses committed by their leadership, however much it was imposed upon them. There is no reason for the outside world to shoulder the entire financial burden instead.

Iraq will have plenty of money from their oil production. It is only fair that some of this wealth serve to make reparations. For all their blather about "Arab unity" (one of my favorite oxymorons) and pan-Arab brotherhood, why isn't fabulously wealthy Saudi Arabia stepping up to the plate and forgiving Iraqi debt in a gesture of support for this newly liberated country?

Posted by Zenster 2004-05-18 2:22:38 PM|| 2004-05-18 2:22:38 PM|| Front Page Top

#3 You might want to look at history before you get all hepped up over the idea of reparations. That was part of the mistakes made in the Versailles Treaty, part of what led to the poverty and anger that led to WWII.

Supposedly we learned our lessons, and instead of forcing Germany to pay reparations for war damage (as opposed to the Holocaust), we pumped money into their economy. That seems to have worked pretty well, at least so far. Sixty years since the last war started by Germany is better than twenty, no?

You apparently would rather punish the people for the crimes of a tyrant and ignore the lessons of history.

Posted by Robert Crawford 2004-05-18 2:48:09 PM|| [http://www.kloognome.com] 2004-05-18 2:48:09 PM|| Front Page Top

#4 Maybe the profits Kuwaiti businesses have made from doing biz in Iraq in the past year should partially offset this?

Posted by Anonymous2U 2004-05-18 3:26:33 PM|| 2004-05-18 3:26:33 PM|| Front Page Top

#5 Robert, your points are well made, but at what point does a country manage to absolve itself of any responsibility for the crimes of its government? There are leigons of Iraqis who also went along with Saddam's tryannical regime, kept it in place and profited from it. There needs to be some sort of accountability for this. That is what I'm trying to point out here. Not all Iraqis are victims in this situation.

Also, Germany has paid out reparations to more than just the Jewish Holocaust victims. It is not as if Iraq is entirely without an ability to pay, unlike ravaged post-WWI Germany.

In recent years Germany has paid out nearly 1.8 billion marks on the basis of special bilateral agreements concluded in 1991 and 1993 with Poland and three successor states of the former Soviet Union -- the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Belarus (White Russia) -- even though in 1953 Poland and the Soviet Union each renounced any further reparations payments from Germany.

Posted by Zenster 2004-05-18 3:26:46 PM|| 2004-05-18 3:26:46 PM|| Front Page Top

#6 Maybe the profits Kuwaiti businesses have made from doing biz in Iraq in the past year should partially offset this?

Good point, A2U.

Posted by Zenster 2004-05-18 3:28:17 PM|| 2004-05-18 3:28:17 PM|| Front Page Top

#7 This is as much about the traditional rakeoff for Iraqi officals as anything. Control of the purse means that their retirement funds just went sky high.

Right now the ministries are as much puppets of the Governing Council as anything. The Council is as filthy a bunch of scallywags and ne'er-do-wells as exists. They're in the council because we can keep an eye on them there. June 30 is approaching, and each one of them has a militia.

Posted by Chuck Simmins 2004-05-18 3:42:39 PM|| [http://blog.simmins.org] 2004-05-18 3:42:39 PM|| Front Page Top

#8 Pay the reparations out of the billions stolen by UN members in the Oil-for-Palaces scandel; that should more than cover the debt.

Posted by Barbara Skolaut 2004-05-18 4:13:36 PM|| 2004-05-18 4:13:36 PM|| Front Page Top

#9 #8 - Right on!

Posted by eLarson 2004-05-18 5:25:30 PM|| 2004-05-18 5:25:30 PM|| Front Page Top

#10 Everyone has a good point. At one level, the Iraqui people were responsible for Saddam. At another level, cutting off reparations to Saudi Arabia (but not Kuwait), would be fit payback for their demanding that Bush Sr. not proceed to Baghdad.

Another thing about this: The Iraquis are beginning to act on their own and making demands on their own, as an independent state would. Bravo to them for at least getting into the UN's face.

Posted by Ptah 2004-05-18 5:57:20 PM|| [http://www.crusaderwarcollege.org] 2004-05-18 5:57:20 PM|| Front Page Top

#11
Iraqis are complaining and complaining about the military occupation of their country. Let them pay and pay for their military occupation of Kuwait, so they don't forget about that.
.

Posted by Mike Sylwester 2004-05-18 6:14:27 PM|| 2004-05-18 6:14:27 PM|| Front Page Top

13:58 Jarhead
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