Arab summit ends in failure
Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Wednesday, March 28, 2001
AMMAN — Arab leaders ended their brief summit unable to agree on the
future of international sanctions on Iraq.
The Arab League summit ended on Wednesday afternoon after members
couldn't agree on a resolution regarding United Nations sanctions on Baghdad
and its relations with neighboring Kuwait. The dispute pitted Iraq and its
supporters against Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
The summit, which began on Tuesday, broke up shortly after Iraq rejected
a draft resolution that called for an end to sanctions but also called on
Iraq to honor all UN resolutions. These included resolutions against the
development of weapons of mass destruction and aggression against Kuwait.
The dispute delayed the convening of the summit on Wednesday. After a
brief session, the summit was concluded and Arab leaders left Amman.
Arab leaders agreed to increase financial support for the Palestinans
and implement previous pledges. The Palestinian Authority has complained
that only a small portion of the $1 billion pledged by the league has been
transferred to the regime led by PA Chairman Yasser Arafat.
The Arab League has 22
members.
In the opening address, Jordan's King Abdullah called on the
international community to lift sanctions from Iraq. Abdullah said the Iraqi
people have suffered under the sanctions.
A draft resolution presented to Arab leaders urged the UN
Security Council to lift sanctions on Baghdad's calls for the resumption of
Iraqi commercial flights.
The resolution did not call for unilateral Arab measures.
Diplomatic sources said the draft resolution had been held up by disputes over
language rather than substance. They said the four-point draft addressed
suspected Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. The resolution did not
contain Kuwait's demand for an apology for Iraq's invasion and occupation of
the sheikdom in 1990.
Kuwait has endorsed the draft, but Iraq has withheld approval. The
London-based A-Sharq Al Awsat daily reported on Tuesday that if Arab leaders
could not agree on the Iraq issue then the issue could be postponed
until the next summit scheduled for next year.
Arab League foreign ministers earlier tried to put their best face on the
dispute. "There are no points of disagreement," Algerian Foreign Minister
Abdul Aziz Belkhadem said. "They are merely different approaches which we
are trying to reconcile."
Arab League foreign ministers did agree on issues that concern the
Israeli-Palestinian mini-war. This included supporting an Iraqi effort to
provide the Palestinians with about $900 million. The Iraqi plan requires UN
approval.
In his speech at the summit, Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser
Arafat said the Israeli government is helping Jewish settlers attack the
Palestinians. Clutching what he described was a U.S. report, Arafat accused
the Israeli military of using uranium-depleted shells against Palestinians.
In Washington, the Bush administration held talks on Monday with
visiting French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine. Officials said Vedrine was
briefed on a plan that would deploy UN personnel along the Iraqi border and
at key foreign airports to ensure that Baghdad does not import military
systems.
"The Middle East was high on our agenda," U.S. Secretary of State Colin
Powell said after meeting Vedrine. "In that regard, we agree that Iraq must
honor its UN obligations. The foreign minister and I
discussed how we can ensure that the UN sanctions are targeted at the Iraqi
regime's attempts to develop weapons of mass destruction while sparing the
people of Iraq from any suffering."
U.S. officials said that under the administration's plan those
countries that cooperate with the UN would be allowed to buy Iraqi oil at
discounted prices. The provision is meant to obtain the cooperation of
Jordan, Syria and Turkey.
U.S. officials said the administration's plan of smart sanctions would
be submitted to the UN in June.
Wednesday, March 28, 2001
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