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Britain gives up on resolution condemning Iraq
September 6, 1996
Web posted at: 4:00 p.m. EDT (2000 GMT)NEW YORK (CNN) -- The United States suffered a blow at the hands of the international community Friday when Britain gave up on a U.N. resolution condemning the Iraqi army's incursion into Kurdistan last weekend.
The resolution condemning Iraq and calling for its withdrawal from Kurdistan collapsed before the U.N. Security Council under the threat of a Russian veto.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Madeleine Albright told reporters the resolution was no longer under consideration because Britain had "ceased consultation" on the matter.
"I think that it just shows that sometimes the council is not the most effective way to deal with this. The United States sent the strongest signal," said a visibly frustrated Albright.
The signal she referred to were the 44 cruise missiles sent to southern Iraq on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Disagreement over U.S. actions
The 15 council members, representing major powers in the 1990-91 Gulf War, failed after four days of deliberations to agree on a text for the resolution, in part because of opposition to U.S. missile attacks and the expansion of the "no fly" zone in southern Iraq.
Russia had threatened to veto the resolution. China agreed with Russia and France had reservations, as did Egypt and Indonesia.
India, which is not a member of the security council, added its voice Friday to growing condemnation of the U.S. missile attacks.
"It is highly regrettable. We call upon the United States to refrain from any other attacks on Iraq and to respect its sovereignty and integrity," Indian Foreign Minister Inder Kumar Gujral told parliament Friday.
The U.S. has found some international support among its European allies. Britain and Germany support the U.S. missile strikes while France has given its qualified support to the operation by agreeing to patrol the no-fly zone in northern Iraq and the original one in the south, not the expanded version.
Finding consensus on U.S. policy toward Iraq proved almost as difficult in the United States. After days of partisan bickering, the Senate approved a resolution praising the U.S. military strikes on Iraq but -- at Republican insistence -- made no mention of President Clinton by name.
Some Republicans feared the resolution would become an endorsement of Clinton's international policy in an election year.
Turkey airs concerns
Turkey, a key U.S. ally during the Gulf War, put a price on its participation in security efforts in the region Friday.
Turkish Foreign Minister Tansu Ciller said she wanted compensation from the United States for losses incurred by her country's backing of the allied effort against Iraq.
In a separate effort, Turkey is planning to create a security zone in northern Iraq up to 12 miles (19 kilometers) deep to prevent Kurdish rebels from crossing its border.
There was heavy military activity on the Turkish side of the frontier with Iraq on Thursday, but Ciller said a thrust across the border into Kurdish areas of northern Iraq was not imminent. Iraq summoned a senior Turkish diplomat to Baghdad Thursday to complain about the military buildup along the border.
More clashes reported
Friday brought more conflicting accounts on the position of Iraqi troops in northern Iraq and reports of renewed clashes between rival Kurdish factions, but there was no evidence that the Iraqis had joined in the fighting.
U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry said Thursday he believed Iraqi troops were leaving the area, but other reports said Iraqi tanks could be seen in roadside positions near Irbil. Perry said the Iraqis had left security forces behind.
CNN's Peter Arnett said Baghdad was calm Friday following a round of anti-American demonstrations in the capital the day before.
Correspondents Peter Arnett, Christiane Amanpour and Louise Schiavone and The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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