United Nations, Mar 12: Stressing the need to disarm Iraq through peaceful means, India has asserted that force should be used only as the "very last, unavoidable" option and as authorised by the UN Security Council.
As the discussions on disarmament of Iraq enter a critical phase, it is important to underline that "our focus should be on the need to secure disarmament without resorting to force as far as possible," India`s ambassador to UN, Vijay nambiar, said participating in the Security Council debate on the situation in Iraq. The international community, he emphasised, has to strike a balance between the objective of achieving Iraq`s full compliance with UN resolutions and the means adopted to reach goal. "The balance can be best achieved through a collective decision of international community through the United Nations," he said.
"If the actions of the council are to be seen to possess legitimacy, they must be issued from a body which is united and acts responsibly towards ensuring compliance by the regime in Iraq, ensures stability in the immediate neighbourhood and safeguards international peace and security in the region as whole," Nambiar said Warning that the cost of war would be "incalculable" in material and human terms in the region and beyond, he urged Iraq to cooperate "actively" with the weapons inspection process and comply fully with the council resolutions.
Bureau Report