Iraq (Hansard, 21 January 2003)

§ 19. Mr. Francois
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to ensure long-term stability in Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [91802]

§ Mr. Mike O'Brien
As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary explained in his written statement of 7 January, our priority is to secure Iraqi compliance with UN Security Council resolutions, including on giving up weapons of mass destruction. We are working to ensure that Iraq becomes, in the Foreign Secretary's words, "a stable, united and law abiding state, within its present borders, co-operating with the international community, no longer posing a threat to its neighbours or to international security, abiding by all its international obligations and providing effective and representative government for its own people."

§ 21. Mr. Lyons
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the action the UK Government will take should the UN decide not to take military action against Iraq. [91804]

§ Mr. Rammell
In the event that there is a material breach, the preference of the British Government is for a second resolution. So far, the UN Security Council has, as Kofi Annan has said, "faced up to its responsibilities". We believe it will continue to do so. But we must reserve our position in the event that it does not.

§ Mr. Lyons
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reason the report from Iraq on weapons of mass destruction was not presented in its entirety to the UN. [91514]

§ Mr. Rammell
Under relevant non-proliferation conventions, China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America are obliged to prevent the dissemination of information relating to the production of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons.
The President of the UN Security Council therefore decided that the full Iraqi declaration should only be given to these members of the Security Council, who 224W also have the expertise to assess the risks of proliferation. His decision followed consultations with all members of the Security Council.
The other members received the main body of the Declaration excluding a number of sensitive passages and words that were omitted by UNMOVIC and the IAEA who, after consulting the Security Council members with expertise to assess the risks of proliferation, judged them to contain information that might be of use to potential WMD proliferators.

§ Mrs. Anne Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the preliminary findings of UN weapons inspectors about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. [91791]

§ Mr. Mike O'Brien
We maintain regular contact with UNMOVIC and the IAEA about the progress of inspections. Dr. Blix and Dr. El Baradei will be reporting to the UN Security Council on 27 January 2003 Their report is expected to cover in some detail their initial findings and their impressions on the level of co-operation received. We will then be in a position to assess their findings.

§ Joan Ruddock
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the work of the weapons inspectors in Iraq. [91800]

§ Mr. Mike O'Brien
We maintain regular contact with UNMOVIC and the IAEA about the progress of inspections. Dr. Blix and Dr. El Baradei will he reporting to the UN Security Council on 27 January. We look forward to receiving their report.
Dr. Blix had a meeting with my right hon. Friend The Prime Minister on Friday at which he told the Prime Minister that, while the inspectors had encountered no direct obstruction in carrying out their task, the onus was on Iraq to be more proactive in their cooperation.