INTERVIEW WITH IGOR IVANOV
FOREIGN MINISTER OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

January 27, 2003

Question: You are just back from the Kremlin, where you had a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. Did you discuss the upcoming debate of the reports by the IAEA and UNMOVIC heads at the UNSC meeting?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: Naturally, we discussed the situation around Iraq from the point of view of the upcoming UN Security Council meeting, which will hear reports from the heads of UNMOVIC and IAEA, Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei. We are in continuous contact both with UNMOVIC and with IAEA. We did a great deal to make sure that the inspectors start their work and believe that the international community should give every necessary help to the international inspectors so that they could efficiently accomplish the tasks before them. Russia will act in precisely this manner, and such instructions were given to me by the President.

Question: How important do you think are the reports submitted by the UNMOVIC and IAEA heads to the January 27 UNSC meeting?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: Of course, the reports by the UNMOVIC and IAEA heads are very important because ultimately the inspectors are to answer one key question, namely, whether Iraq does have weapons of mass destruction or not. So far we do not have any information about Iraq having such weapons, and that is why much depends on the inspectors' work. This is of fundamental importance.

Iraq must disarm itself. What does this imply? Iraq must dispose of those types of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery vehicles that are prohibited by the UN Security Council. This is what the inspectors are dealing with. The January 27 UNSC meeting is important because it is a sort of starting point at which the inspectors should present a vision of their further work to perform the mission stemming from Resolution 1441 and other resolutions of the UN Security Council. We will listen to the inspectors very closely.

Question: Russia believes that the presentation of the reports does not draw the line under the process of international inspections in Iraq, right?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: I would like to begin by saying that UNSC Resolution 1441 was passed in order to provide for the inspectors' work. The inspectors have been working for two months to define the area of their operations, that is, they were to put on record the situation as it has shaped up since December 1998, when the previous inspecting mission stopped its work. Now they are to report on how the situation is shaping up and what needs to be done further to make sure that they accomplish their mission. That is why we proceed from the assumption that this is the initial stage of the inspectors' work.

After having presented their reports Hans Blix and ElBaradei are to propose a work plan for the future and to identify questions that need to be clarified and additional documents that are required. The inspectors say that there are gaps. What does this mean? They must give the UNSC a list of those questions which need to be answered, including, of course, with the participation of Iraq. The Security Council should support them and let them continue their mission.

Question: How long does Russia think should the inspectors' mission in Iraq continue? What is Moscow's view of the possible military scenario?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: As for the timeframe of the inspectors' work, only the inspectors' themselves could answer this question. They are specialists, and they carry a lot of responsibility. They must say whether Iraq has weapons of mass destruction. If that's the case, they must prove this. They must take measures for the disposal of such weapons. At this point it is hard to say how much time this could take.

As for the use of force, today we are formulating a goal that is the rallying point for the entire international community. The most important thing to us is to be sure that Iraq does not have weapons of mass destruction. From our point of view, it is through the inspectors' work that this question could be answered with maximum efficiency while preserving the unity of the international community. This is very important because Iraq, though a major problem confronting the international community today, is not the only such problem. We have, and will continue to have to look for ways of settling many very complex problems. If, in addressing the Iraqi problem, we bring the situation to a point where the unity of the international community is disrupted, this could cause serious damage to our further activities, for example, in the global fight against terrorism or the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. That is why we believe that, in addressing the Iraqi problem, it is very important at the same time to keep the unity of the international community. It is precisely for this reason that we decided to support the adoption of UNSC Resolution 1441, although we did not consider it necessary. But we decided to do that for the sake of keeping the unity of the international community.

Question: Does Russia in principle support the use of force in resolving the situation around Iraq?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: We believe that at present there are no grounds for resorting to the extreme measure, that is, the use of force. You know, Iraq is said to pose a threat. Meanwhile, neighboring nations say that there are no threats coming from the territory of Iraq. Iraq is said to threaten US security. But we don's see any serious, substantive arguments in favor of Iraq posing a real threat to the US today. That is why at this point we cannot say with confidence that Iraq is presenting a threat to regional or international security. The concrete problem of disposal of weapons of mass destruction is being addressed in Iraq, and it is on a solution to this problem that we should focus our efforts. We believe that political and diplomatic steps are quite sufficient for resolving this problem. There is no need to resort to methods involving the use of force.

Question: There are views in the US that no UN sanction for a military action against Iraq is needed and that following September 11 the use of force in resolving the Iraqi problem would be a preemptive measure in the fight against terrorism. What is your opinion?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: To begin with, in our view UNSC Resolution 1441 makes it clear that if the implementation of that resolution comes up against difficulties, another meeting of the Security Council will have to be called in order to determine further steps to be taken. That is why a new meeting of the Security Council is required. As for preemptive strikes, this is a far from easy matter. Here a great deal depends on a subjective approach: when such preemptive action, especially unilateral one, should be taken, against whom, and in what circumstances. We think that this could aggravate rather than resolve the problem. This is what the UN Security Council mechanism is for. Under the UN Charter the UNSC alone can take decision on the use of force against any sovereign nation. We believe that such decisions should be worked out precisely through the UN Security Council. No unilateral action should be taken.

Question: How badly could US unilateral action against Iraq aggravate the Russian-US relations, which have grown so strong since September 11, 2001?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: We welcomed the decision of US President George Bush when on September 13 he addressed the UN General Assembly and asked the UN Security Council to take the decision of the Iraqi problem in hand. We believe that it was the only correct way. Practice has demonstrated on more than one occasion that when the international community puts up a solid front, results become quite obvious.

Take Afghanistan and the establishment of the anti-terrorist coalition. Joint steps were taken at that time that made it possible to remove the Taliban and hand power over to the transitional government, which is now carrying out reform in Afghanistan. This is an example of how a very complex problem can be resolved through international efforts. Afghanistan was indeed a most complex problem. It was precisely from Afghanistan that a threat to regional international stability was posed. It was from Afghanistan that the threat of terrorism stemmed. We joined our efforts and resolved that problem. And precisely for this reason we now believe that in the case of Iraq and other problems, too, it is necessary to preserve such unity and act in concert. And acting in concert means acting through the UN Security Council. But if unilateral steps are taken in circumvention of the Council, this, clearly, will bring about a split in the anti-terrorist coalition.

I do not know how many countries would support such unilateral action. In any case, this would mean a split in the international coalition. I am confident that only those forces would be happy over such a split that would like to subsequently exploit it. These are the forces of extremism, the forces that profess terrorism. I don't think we should give them such a chance.

Question: Will Russia leave the coalition with the US if the US takes unilateral action?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: I don't think the question here is what Russia would do. Naturally, we will be unable to support unilateral action. However, not just Russia, but the overwhelming majority of nations of the world will oppose unilateral action with the use of force. That is why I think it is important today to keep a level head and carry on our joint efforts even if there may be differences over practical action. I repeat, we have no differences over the fundamental issue. We want a clear picture that Iraq does not have weapons of mass destruction. This is a matter that can and must be discussed. I am confident that we will work out concerted action through a constructive approach.

Question: The Russian government has no interest in a war in Iraq. But why doesn't it support the political banishment of Saddam Hussein that is proposed by the US?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: We are against war because we believe that it would cause enormous suffering to the Iraqi people and the region as a whole. And the main thing is that it would not bring us closer to the accomplishment of the main task.

As for the second part of the question, this matter is unrelated to the UN Security Council resolution. No Security Council resolution addresses the internal regime in Iraq. UNSC resolutions address questions related to weapons of mass destruction, and this is what we are concerned with. The Iraqi people should themselves determine what kind of regime the country needs. Russia is not discussing and will not discuss such matters.

Question: Would Russia be ready to use its right of veto in the UN Security Council in case of war in Iraq?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: You must have noticed that over the past few years UN Security Council members have resorted to the right of veto very seldom. We do not think that this is the best way to resolve issues. It is better to work out a compromise, a decision that would make it possible to preserve unity in the Council. That is why we would make an effort and think about ways of avoiding any veto and working out a decision that would keep unity among the UNSC members.

Question: Is there anything we haven't discussed but you would like to mention?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: I would like to stress anew that however important and complex the Iraqi situation may be, we have many other problems confronting the international community today. These include the problem of terrorism, the threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the danger of weapons of mass destruction falling into terrorists' hands. We will find it difficult to tackle these problems unless we succeed in keeping the unity of the international community. It is only by acting in concert that we will be able to achieve real results in this struggle against global threats. I think that these should be our guiding principles as we address individual problems. We should cherish our unity.

Question: Do you think that the US campaign for war in Iraq is distracting attention from the fight against terrorism?

Foreign Minister Ivanov: I want to say that if any unilateral action with the use of force is taken against Iraq in this case in circumvention of the UN Security Council, this, naturally, would bring about a split in the international community and the anti-terrorist coalition and, therefore, detract from our efforts in the struggle against our common enemy. I think that any weakening of the anti-terrorist coalition is not in the interest of the US, Russia, France, Germany, New Zealand or other countries. On the contrary, we should strengthen it. This is precisely what was said at the latest meeting of the UN Security Council.