UNITED NATIONS, JULY 23: Top UN officials and Security Council members welcomed delegates of the US-backed interim Governing Council on Tuesday as a first step toward Iraqis reclaiming control of their country, and urged the US to end its military occupation as soon as possible. In the first UN assessment of Iraq since the US-led invasion, special representative Sergio Vieira de Mello told the Security Council how the UN could assist the overextended coalition, which is struggling to secure order and restore public services while fending off guerrilla attacks. But he emphasised that the UN cannot replace the coalition authority or the rightful role of the Iraqis in shaping their future.
‘‘There will need to be a clear timetable, laid out as soon as possible, for the earliest possible restoration of sovereignty,’’ de Mello said. ‘‘Iraqis need to know that stability will return and that the occupation will end.’’ Underpinning the session — but hardly mentioned — was the debate over whether Washington needs a new resolution to explicitly authorise other countries to contribute troops and money to Iraq’s reconstruction. After several nations have refused to help the coalition stabilise the country without a more specific UN mandate, Washington has been talking quietly with France, Russia and Germany about what it would take to secure their backing. Washington hoped that the presence of the three members of the country’s new Governing Council at Tuesday’s session would reassure other nations that the coalition is quickly transferring power to Iraqi hands, and that the more help they receive, the quicker the occupying forces can leave the country.
US Ambassador John D. Negroponte appealed again on Tuesday to council members to join the coalition in ‘‘establishing the conditions for security, which will allow prosperity and democracy to flourish.’’ US diplomats insist that the existing resolution 1483 that recognised the coalition as an occupying power provides enough authority for other countries’s assistance. ‘‘We want to hear from other countries what more they would need to start helping the people of Iraq,’’ said a US diplomat. But German and French diplomats say no money or troops will be coming until the US hands over more power to the UN and Iraqis. The UN is already working to deliver food and medicine throughout the country. The next steps are writing a constitution, preparing for eventual elections, setting up war crimes tribunals, and training police to establish law and order — all elements the UN says it can help with, de Mello told the Los Angeles Times. (LAT-WP)
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