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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…

  • Globalization Without Representation?

    The following analysts, many in Seattle, are available for comment on the World Trade Organization: LORI WALLACH Director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, Wallach said: “President Clinton’s PR stunt on the child labor treaty is the height of hypocrisy, given he knows that absent major WTO changes – which he has refused to demand…

  • Clinton and Protests in Seattle

    JUDITH BARISH An editor of the World Trade Observer and former communications director for the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, Barish said: “In 1994, Clinton promised not to support the establishment of the World Trade Organization unless it addressed labor standards, but that was forgotten. Now the administration is again talking up labor standards. But their…

  • WTO vs. Democracy?

    REP. DENNIS KUCINICH A letter to President Clinton initiated by Rep. Kucinich (D-Ohio) and signed by 113 House Democrats says: “The WTO infringes on the sovereignty of nations to enforce worker rights. A proposed bill to ban products made with child labor is WTO-illegal…” Speaking to World Trade Watch, a daily national radio program co-produced…

  • WTO Rules: The Record

    SEATTLE – Since its founding five years ago, the World Trade Organization has consistently settled trade disputes in favor of corporate interests, frequently deeming labor and environmental regulations “non-tariff trade barriers.” Conflicts between countries are decided by three unelected WTO officials in Geneva in secretive proceedings. With each nation challenging or threatening to challenge each…

  • Road to Seattle: Key Battles on WTO

    WASHINGTON — In the lead-up to the World Trade Organization ministerial summit in Seattle next week, U.S. trade representative Charlene Barshefsky spoke at the National Press Club today. But critics charge that she is speaking on behalf of discredited U.S. trade policies. SCOTT NOVA Director of the Citizens Trade Campaign, Nova said Tuesday afternoon: “Barshefsky…

  • Road to WTO Summit in Seattle: Why the Protests?

    JUDITH BARISH An editor of the World Trade Observer and former communications director for the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, Barish said: “There will be thousands of people protesting in the streets in Seattle, but not because we oppose trade and economic globalization. We want to see the rules written to protect workers and citizens as…

  • Budget Debate: Public Vs. Politicians

    STEVEN KULL Director of the Program on International Policy Attitudes and co-author of Misreading the Public: The Myth of a New Isolationism, Kull said: “When pollsters ask Americans how they feel about spending — on, for example, defense and foreign aid — they say to keep defense where it is and cut foreign aid. However,…

  • Human Rights, Trade and Foreign Policy

    While President Clinton visits Turkey and tries to bring China into the World Trade Organization, the following analysts are available for comment: BAMA ATHREYA Director of Asia Programs for the International Labor Rights Fund, Athreya said: “The U.S.-China negotiations on China’s entry into the WTO are certainly a boon for U.S. business, but will it…

  • Battles on Campaign Finance

    Mass. Legislature Tries to Loophole Reform; Judge Upholds Maine Initiative DAVID DONNELLY Campaign manager for Mass Voters for Clean Elections, Donnelly commented: “For years the legislature would not pass public funding of campaigns even though that’s what most people wanted. We put it on the ballot and it won by two-to-one a year ago. On…

  • Berlin Wall Anniversary

    MARTIN A. LEE The author of The Beast Reawakens, a recent book about neofascism and right-wing extremism in Europe and the U.S., Lee said: “Ten years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Germany is a deeply troubled nation, vexed by high unemployment, a stagnant economy, acrimonious relations between eastern and western residents, a charged…

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