News Releases

  • Moment of Truth, or Lies?

    DENIS HALLIDAY Former head of the UN oil-for-food program, Halliday warns of “the catastrophic humanitarian impact of war and the imminent collapse of the oil-for-food program.” Halliday, who was also former U.N. Assistant Secretary General, said today: “The Secretary General should be prohibited from recalling the inspectors without the permission of the five permanent members of the Security Council.” IMAD KHADDURI Yesterday Vice President Dick Cheney claimed that Iraq has “reconstituted nuclear weapons.” Khadduri worked with the Iraqi Atomic Energy Commission from 1968 until 1998. Now in Canada, he was recently interviewed by UNMOVIC. Khadduri asserts that Iraq has not…


  • Beyond the Rhetoric: Accuracy.org/sc

    The Bush administration has repeatedly cited violations of UN Security Council resolutions as key reasons for its policy on Iraq. But several nations have Security Council resolutions pending against them, including Indonesia, Armenia and Croatia. And the violators with the most Security Council resolutions — more than Iraq — are Israel (over 30), Turkey (over 20) and Morocco (over 15). A partial listing of UN Security Council resolutions being violated by U.S. allies is available at: www.Accuracy.org/sc The following analysts are available for interviews: STEPHEN ZUNES Zunes, who wrote the piece “United Nations Security Council Resolutions Currently Being Violated by…


  • Showdown at the U.N. — Interviews Available

    “All Members shall settle their international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered. All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations…. The parties to any dispute, the continuance of which is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, shall, first of all, seek a solution by negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional…


  • Why Has It Taken Iraq 12 Years to Disarm?

    In his presentation before the Security Council on Friday, Hans Blix claimed: “If Iraq had provided the necessary cooperation in 1991, the phase of disarmament — under resolution 687 — could have been short and a decade of sanctions could have been avoided.” However, an examination of U.S. policy indicates that for the last 12 years the U.S. government has maintained the economic sanctions regardless of Iraqi actions towards the weapons inspectors, creating a disincentive for compliance — and helping to explain why Iraq has taken so long to comply: April 3, 1991: U.N. Security Council passes Resolution 687, the…


  • Ellsberg on Whistleblower Arrest in U.S. Spying on U.N. Scandal

    A 28-year-old woman working at the British Government Communications Headquarters has been arrested on suspicion of contravening the Official Secrets Act. The arrest came shortly after the Observer newspaper in London revealed a top-secret memo from the U.S. National Security Agency outlining plans for spying on U.N. delegates, part of U.S. efforts to gain approval for a new Security Council resolution on Iraq. The Observer reported yesterday that “a top-secret memo from the National Security Agency, which monitors communications around the world, was passed to this newspaper by British security sources who objected to being asked to aid the American…


  • * Iraq UN Debate * White House News Conference

    MICHAEL RATNER Ratner is president of the Center for Constitutional Rights and coauthor of Against War with Iraq. A resolution with a March 17 deadline is reportedly being put forward to the Security Council. Ratner said today: “The U.S. government is clearly desperate to get some sort of cover for its war. No one has shown that Iraq is a threat. There’s no self-defense here; Bush is just trying to find some sort of cover for naked aggression.” More Information JAMES PAUL Paul, executive director of the Global Policy Forum, monitors policy-making at the United Nations. More Information SUSAN WRIGHT…


  • Interviews Available: Women and War

    Saturday is International Women’s Day and March is Women’s History Month. The following analysts and activists are available for interviews on issues of war and peace: JODY WILLIAMS Recently back from Burma, Williams is the 1997 Noble Peace Laureate for her work on the Mine Ban Treaty. She said today: “The ‘relevance’ of the United Nations does stand in the balance. I believe the institution will be severely damaged if members of the Security Council concede to intense pressure by one member state and vote for war while UN weapons inspections are bearing results.” More Information KATHY KELLY Co-founder of…


  • Tough Questions for Bush on Iraq Tonight

    Has the National Security Agency, as the Observer in Britain recently reported, been spying on delegates from various countries at the UN? Is the U.S. bribing and threatening other UN members? You have said that this invasion of Iraq would be “moral,” yet the national board of your own denomination, the United Methodists, has said: “It is inconceivable that Jesus Christ … would support this proposed attack.” How do you respond to them? Considering that the U.S. government has based its case for war against Iraq on a non-existent IAEA report, a plagiarized dossier, non-existent Iraq-Al’Qaida link, and twisting of…


  • U.S. Spying on UN Delegates: Fallout

    The Observer newspaper in London has reported on a leaked U.S. National Security Agency memo outlining plans for the surveillance of both office and home communications of UN delegates from Security Council member countries, as part of U.S. efforts to gain approval for its new Security Council resolution on Iraq. The story is now causing reverberations in a number of countries where governments have not yet taken a clear position on the resolution in the Security Council. The following people are available for interviews: ED VULLIAMY One of the authors of the Observer article, Vulliamy said today: “Allegations that this…


  • Top Secret Document Reveals U.S. Spying on U.N. Delegates

    This afternoon, White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer refused to comment on questions about a story broken by the Observer newspaper in London. On Sunday the paper published an article headlined “Revealed: U.S. Dirty Tricks to Win Vote on Iraq War.” The Observer reported that it has obtained a top secret U.S. National Security Agency memo outlining the surveillance of both office and home communications of UN delegates from Security Council member countries. The high-priority memo was from Frank Koza, chief of staff in the “Regional Targets” section of the NSA, on January 31 — shortly before Colin Powell’s presentation to…


  • Bombing of Yugoslavia: One Year Later

    JAN HARTSOUGH Shortly after the bombing of Yugoslavia started a year ago today, Hartsough traveled to the Balkans with a social-change organization called Crabgrass. She also attended the Women in Black international conference in October 1999 in Montenegro. She said today: “A police force that can establish law and justice in Kosovo still has not…

  • While Senate Holds DOE Hearing Today, Nuclear Victims Blast Narrow Scope

    WASHINGTON — While the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee holds a hearing today to focus on health and safety issues at two Department of Energy atomic plants, representatives of workers and others subjected to radiation exposure say that the Senate panel is dodging a wide array of serious problems at DOE nuclear facilities across the country.…

  • Foreign Policy Issues: India, Taiwan and Russia

    NEIL TANGRI Field director for the Multinationals Resource Center, Tangri has worked in India on development issues. He said today: “The past 10 years have seen dramatic changes in the Indian economy. Frustrated by corruption and a sense of losing the economic race to China and the ‘tiger’ economies, Indian politicians on both the right…

  • “New Economy” or Stock Bubble?

    As the stock market continues to rise, many analysts are proclaiming a “New Economy.” They argue that computer technologies have created a market not bound by the physical constraints of the old industrial economy. But are we becoming increasingly unprepared for a downturn? Among the critics of the New Economy available for interviews are: ELLEN…

  • Congressional Commission Slams IMF; Analysts Available for Interviews

    The new report from the International Financial Institutions Advisory Commission, created by Congress in 1998, is adding to calls for drastic reform of the International Monetary Fund. The “Meltzer Commission” report urges full cancellation of the debts owed by poor countries to the IMF and the World Bank as well as significant reduction of the…

  • Beyond “Super Tuesday”

    LEONARD WILLIAMS Professor of political science at Manchester College and co-author of the recent Campaigns and Elections article “‘Moderates Win’ and Other Political Myths,” Williams said today: “In part the election fits the standard scenario of the more established candidates winning after a bit of trouble. But up to this point in the campaign there’s…

  • Pinochet’s Release

    JOYCE HORMAN Joyce Horman is the widow of Charles Horman. Along with another U.S. citizen, Frank Teruggi, he was detained and murdered in September 1973 in the days following Gen. Augusto Pinochet’s bloody military coup backed by the U.S. government. She has worked to uncover the facts about his murder for more than 26 years.…

  • Religion and Politics

    REV. JIM WALLIS Editor-in-chief of Sojourners magazine, Rev. Wallis said: “Al Gore and George W. Bush have talked about how much Jesus influenced them. The question has been whether that’s an appropriate thing for a candidate to talk about. It is very appropriate for a candidate to speak of their personal faith — if they…

  • Bradley and McCain: Insurgents?

    MATTHEW ROTHSCHILD Editor of The Progressive, Rothschild said: “Bradley doesn’t represent a real alternative to Gore or McCain or Bush. He supports the death penalty. He favors tougher sanctions on Iraq. Along with Gore, he has been a leading proponent of NAFTA and the World Trade Organization; and he, like Gore, has carried water for…

  • Scientist’s Resignation Raises Questions About Nuclear Policy

    A month ago, Andreas Toupadakis held a classified position at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. But he resigned his post, voicing criticisms of U.S. nuclear policy. Interviews are available with Dr. Toupadakis and other nuclear policy analysts: ANDREAS TOUPADAKIS Prior to joining the staff at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s “Stockpile Stewardship” program on nuclear weapons,…

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