The White House, President George W. Bush Click to print this document

For Immediate Release
January 31, 2003

Global Message

KEY POINTS

  • The gravest danger we face in the war on terror is outlaw regimes that seek and possess nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

  • The UN and U.S. intelligence sources have known for some time that Saddam Hussein has materials to produce chemical and biological weapons, but he has not accounted for them, nor has he accounted for almost 30,000 munitions capable of delivering chemical agents.

  • Thousands of Iraqi security personnel are at work hiding documents and materials from the UN inspectors. Iraqi officials accompany all inspectors in order to intimidate witnesses, and Saddam Hussein has ordered that scientists who cooperate with the UN be killed, along with their families.

  • Saddam Hussein aids and protects terrorists, including al-Qaida members. He could provide hidden weapons to terrorists or help them develop their own. It would take just one vial, one canister, one crate slipped into our country to bring a day of horror like none we have ever known.

  • The United States will ask the UN Security Council to convene next week to consider the facts of Iraq's ongoing defiance of the world. We will consult. But if Saddam Hussein does not disarm, we will act for the safety of our people, and for the peace of the world.
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