UNITED NATIONS – Iraq’s incoming government needs the U.S.-led multinational force to stay to prevent civil war but insists on command of Iraqi forces and authority over “security matters,” Iraq’s foreign minister said Thursday.
Hoshyar Zebari told the U.N. Security Council that a U.S.-British draft resolution on Iraqi sovereignty must spell out the relationship between the government and the multinational force to ensure that Iraq’s self-rule isn’t compromised and the force is able to defend itself.
But he said the new interim government that will take power on June 30 doesn’t want “a fixed deadline or timetable” for the departure of the multinational force, because it would be used by the country’s “enemies” to foment unrest.
The resolution also must underline “the transfer of full sovereignty to the people of Iraq” and authorize the interim government “to control, administer and manage Iraq’s resources and assets,” Zebari said.
“This means investing full authority in the interim government to run Iraq’s affairs, make its own decisions and have authority over Iraq’s security matters,” he said.
Zebari’s address came amid debate over the wording of the resolution, aimed at helping to define the authority of the interim leaders that will run the country until an elected government is determined in January 2005.
The revised U.S.-British draft introduced Tuesday would authorize the multinational force to remain in Iraq under a unified command and urge more countries to contribute troops.
Zebari warned that “any premature departure of international troops would lead to chaos and the real possibility of a civil war in Iraq.”
But Zebari stressed that the new government wants “a clear reference to the status of the multinational forces, their operations, their relations with the Iraqi national government.”
Several countries – including Algeria, the council’s only Arab member – say they want the new resolution to give the country’s new leaders final say over the multinational force.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
