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No conclusive proof about WMD: Blix
United Nations, June 06: The top UN weapons inspector for Iraq has warned against jumping to any conclusion regarding the existence of the Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.
United Nations, June 06: The top UN weapons inspector for Iraq
has warned against jumping to any conclusion regarding the existence
of the Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.
''I trust that in the new environment in Iraq, where there is full
access and cooperation, and in which knowledgeable witnesses should
no longer be inhibited to reveal what they know, it should be
possible to establish the truth we all want to know,'' executive
chairman of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection
Commission (UNMOVIC) Hans Blix told the Security Council in a
statement yesterday.
Presenting UNMOVIC's 13th quarterly report, Mr Blix stressed that
the commission which worked in Iraq from November till the eve of
hostilities in march, had found no evidence of the continuation or
resumption of programmes of weapons of mass destruction or
significant quantities of proscribed items such as ingredients of
biological or chemical weapon.
''As I have noted before, this does not necessarily mean that such
items could not have existed,'' he said. ''They might there remain
long lists of items unaccounted for but it is not justified to jump
to the conclusion that something exists just because it is
unaccounted for.''
On the other hand, noting that the long list of proscribed items
unaccounted for had not been shortened by inspections or Iraqi
explanations, Mr Blix said it was the Iraqis' task to present
unaccounted items if they existed, or provide the evidence that they
did not exist.
''If, for whatever reason, this is not done, the international community cannot have confidence that past programmes or any remaining parts of them have been terminated,'' he added.
On the issue of mobile laboratories for banned weapons, which forces from the united states say they have now found, Mr. Blix said neither the information the Iraqis had presented nor the pictures they had provided matched descriptions recently made available to the UNMOVIC as well as to the media by the United States.
Mr Blix, who retires from his post this month, said UNMOVIC remained prepared to resume work in Iraq as an independent verifier or to conduct long-term monitoring, should the security council so decide.
The United States has said it sees no immediate role for UN Inspectors.
After the meeting members paid tribute to Mr. Blix for his leadership and dedication in guiding the work of UNMOVIC in pursuit of the disarmament of Iraq, the president of the 15-nation body, Russian envoy Sergey Lavrov, informed.
Bureau Report
''If, for whatever reason, this is not done, the international community cannot have confidence that past programmes or any remaining parts of them have been terminated,'' he added.
On the issue of mobile laboratories for banned weapons, which forces from the united states say they have now found, Mr. Blix said neither the information the Iraqis had presented nor the pictures they had provided matched descriptions recently made available to the UNMOVIC as well as to the media by the United States.
Mr Blix, who retires from his post this month, said UNMOVIC remained prepared to resume work in Iraq as an independent verifier or to conduct long-term monitoring, should the security council so decide.
The United States has said it sees no immediate role for UN Inspectors.
After the meeting members paid tribute to Mr. Blix for his leadership and dedication in guiding the work of UNMOVIC in pursuit of the disarmament of Iraq, the president of the 15-nation body, Russian envoy Sergey Lavrov, informed.
Bureau Report