President Pleased with U.N. Vote
Remarks by the President on the United Nations Security Council Resolution
The Rose Garden
10:44 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. With the resolution just passed, the
United Nations Security Council has met important responsibilities,
upheld its principles and given clear and fair notice that Saddam
Hussein must fully disclose and destroy his weapons of mass
destruction. He must submit to any and all methods to verify his
compliance. His cooperation must be prompt and unconditional, or he
will face the severest consequences.
The world has now come together to say that the outlaw regime in
Iraq will not be permitted to build or possess chemical, biological or
nuclear weapons.
That is the judgment of the United States Congress, that is the
judgment of the United Nations Security Council. Now the world must
insist that that judgment be enforced. Iraq's obligation to disarm is
not new, or even recent. To end the Persian Gulf War and ensure its
own survival, Iraq's regime agreed to disarm in April of 1991. For
over a decade the Iraqi regime has treated its own pledge with
contempt.
As today's resolution states, Iraq is already in material breach of
past U.N. demands. Iraq has aggressively pursued weapons of mass
destruction, even while inspectors were inside the country. Iraq has
undermined the effectiveness of weapons inspectors with ploys, delays,
and threats -- making their work impossible and leading to four years
of no inspections at all.
The world has learned from this experience an essential lesson,
inspections will not result in a disarmed Iraq unless the Iraqi regime
fully cooperates. Inspectors do not have the power to disarm an
unwilling regime. They can only confirm that a government has decided
to disarm itself. History has shown that when Iraq's leaders stall
inspections and impede the progress, it means they have something to
hide.
The resolution approved today presents the Iraqi regime with a test
-- a final test. Iraq must now, without delay or negotiations, fully
disarm; welcome full inspections, welcome full inspections, and
fundamentally change the approach it has taken for more than a decade.
The regime must allow immediate and unrestricted access to every
site, every document, and every person identified by inspectors. Iraq
can be certain that the old game of cheat-and-retreat tolerated at
other times will no longer be tolerated.
Any act of delay or defiance will be an additional breach of Iraq's
international obligations, and a clear signal that the Iraqi regime has
once again abandoned the path of voluntary compliance.
With the passage of this resolution, the world must not lapse into
unproductive debates over whether specific instances of Iraqi
noncompliance are serious. Any Iraqi noncompliance is serious, because
such bad faith will show that Iraq has no intention of disarming. If
we're to avert war, all nations must continue to pressure Saddam
Hussein to accept this resolution and to comply with its obligations
and his obligations.
America will be making only one determination: is Iraq meeting the
terms of the Security Council resolution or not? The United States has
agreed to discuss any material breach with the Security Council, but
without jeopardizing our freedom of action to defend our country. If
Iraq fails to fully comply, the United States and other nations will
disarm Saddam Hussein.
I've already met with the head of the U.N. Inspections Program and
the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which has
responsibility for nuclear matters. I've assured them that the United
States will fully support their efforts, including a request for
information that can help identify illegal activities and materials in
Iraq.
I encourage every member of the United Nations to strongly support
the inspection teams. And now the inspectors have an important
responsibility to make full use of the tools we have given them in this
resolution.
All patriotic Iraqis should embrace this resolution as an
opportunity for Iraq to avoid war and end its isolation. Saddam
Hussein cannot hide his weapons of mass destruction from international
inspectors without the cooperation of hundreds and thousands of Iraqis
-- those who work in the weapons program and those who are responsible
for concealing the weapons. We call on those Iraqis to convey whatever
information they have to inspectors, the United States, or other
countries, in whatever manner they can. By helping the process of
disarmament, they help their country.
Americans recognize what is at stake. In fighting a war on terror,
we are determined to oppose every source of catastrophic harm that
threatens our country, our friends, and our allies. We are actively
pursuing dangerous terror networks across the world. And we oppose a
uniquely dangerous regime -- a regime that has harbored terrorists
and can supply terrorists with weapons of mass destruction; a regime
that has built such terrible weapons and has used them to kill
thousands; a brutal regime with a history of both reckless ambition and
reckless miscalculation.
The United States of America will not live at the mercy of any
group or regime that has the motive and seeks the power to murder
Americans on a massive scale. The threat to America also threatens
peace and security in the Middle East and far beyond. If Iraq's
dictator is permitted to acquire nuclear weapons, he could resume his
pattern of intimidation and conquest and dictate the future of a vital
region.
In confronting this threat, America seeks the support of the
world. If action becomes necessary, we will act in the interests of
the world. And America expects Iraqi compliance with all U.N.
resolutions.
The time has come for the Iraqi people to escape oppression, find
freedom and live in hope.
I want to thank the Secretary of State Colin Powell for his
leadership, his good work and his determination over the past two
months. He's worked tirelessly and successfully for a resolution that
recognizes important concerns of our Security Council partners and
makes Iraq's responsibilities clear.
I also thank our Ambassador to the United Nations, John Negroponte
and his team at our U.N. mission in New York for their hard work and
outstanding service to our country. Secretary of State Powell's team
has done a fine job. The American people are grateful to the Security
Council for passing this historic resolution.
Members of the Council acted with courage and took a principled
stand. The United Nations has shown the kind of international
leadership promised by its charter and required by our times. Now
comes the hard part. The Security Council must maintain its unity and
sense of purpose so that the Iraq regime cannot revert to the
strategies of obstruction and deception it used so successfully in the
past.
The outcome of the current crisis is already determined: the full
disarmament of weapons of mass destruction by Iraq will occur. The
only question for the Iraqi regime is to decide how. The United States
prefers that Iraq meet its obligations voluntarily, yet we are prepared
for the alternative. In either case, the just demands of the world
will be met.