Annan talks on Iraq called off (Russia, France, Germany snubbed by the UN?)

Agence France-Presse ^ | April 9, 2003

[Indy Pendance]

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has cancelled a tour of Europe to discuss the post-war reconstruction of Iraq, a UN official has said.

Annan's spokesman, Fred Eckhard, had said yesterday that the UN chief would embark tomorrow on a whirlwind tour of four countries at the heart of wrangling over future UN participation in Iraq - Britain, France, Germany and Russia.

Since then, the trip has been clouded by uncertainty, with Eckhard refusing to say whether it was still on.

An official confirmed the cancellation today.

[Nagilum]

Saw old Kofi on today, and he seemed VERY reticent to want to tackle the post war reconstruction and management. Perhaps he finally realizes the UN pretty much sucks at everything except giving out humanitarian aid and administering post war Iraq is more than the UN can chew.

[ahadams2]

but, but, the Americans and the Brits are ignoring Khofi and now it looks like most of the axis of weasels are too - whatever will become of uh, er, whatever that organization he heads is called?

[goldstategop]

The poor UN. Its all bark, no bite and even its whine is being dismissed.

[Batrachian]

I think he was bought off by the promise of a U.N. humanitarion mission in Iraq. Kind of a take-it-or-leave-it deal.

[longtermmemmory]

kofi realizes he better go with the united states or he will loose the "measly" 20 BILLION in the oil for food program.

Following france is a prescription for disaster.

If we want to neutralize the threat of the French and Germans, we need to diminish the value of the Euro as an international standard.

In this world the international language is english and the international currency of transactions is the US Dollar.

[rllngrk33]

AAAWWWWWWW? So Sad :(

(snicker)

[prairiebreeze]

Koffee was gasping for relevance in the last interview I saw him on a couple of days ago.

Perhaps he's gasped his last.

Prairie

[Nagilum]

I agree completely. I have always thought that personally when this is all over with, we attempt to introduce legislation to bring the countries that had material contributions (UK, Australia, and Poland) into our free trade zone.

None of these are Euro countries. And creating this massive economic zone would undoubtedly hugely undermine the EU and the Euro. Britain, the only EU country not to sign up for the Euro, doesn't get hurt as its economy is still in the very strong GPB.

[TomGuy]

They probably got the memo:

GWB: "Chiraq. No pie for you."
GWB: "Schroeder. No pie for you."
GWB: "Putin. No pie for you."
GWB: "Annon and the UN. No pie for you."

[Billthedrill]

Well, good grief, no matter how you cut it the U.S. and the Brits bled for it and their taxpayers are going to pay for it. If there was a tiny shred of relevance in asking the others their opinions in the matter it escapes me.

[madrastex]

GWB: "Chiraq. No pie for you."
GWB: "Schroeder. No pie for you."
GWB: "Putin. No pie for you."
GWB: "Annon and the UN. No pie for you." ...
Here's a mud-pie (or cow pie) for you!!Losers!

[Drammach]

Seems to me, once the Hussein / Baath regime has ended, the U.N. Sanctions no longer apply.
Those sanctions applied to the prior government, not the New Government.

The U.N. would no longer be able to siphon off $20 billion a year in "Oil for Food" ( re; Oil for Graft ) money.
Why should the New Free Iraq pay a U.N. middle man to buy food and medicine when they can buy it themselves?

[TFMcGuire]

All he had to do was act if he wanted significance. He chose not to. Profound in its simplicity.

Still, I'm glad to see this disunity among the Hole-in-the-Wall gang.

[polemikos]

If we want to neutralize the threat of the French and Germans, we need to diminish the value of the Euro as an international standard.

The Eurocrats will take care of that for us. Not to worry.;-)

[Intolerant in NJ]

... future UN participation in Iraq - ...France, Germany and Russia...From one of my daughter's favorite stories when she was just a little girl -
Oh no, said the little red hen to the dog, the pig, and the goat - you did not help me find the wheat, you did not help me plant the wheat, you did not help me cut the wheat, you did not help me grind the wheat, you did not help me bake the bread, and you will not help me eat the bread - I will eat it myself. And she did - it was delicious......

[George W. Bush]

GWB: "Chiraq. No pie for you."
GWB: "Schroeder. No pie for you."
GWB: "Putin. No pie for you."
GWB: "Annon and the UN. No pie for you."

The intent of Kofi's little jaunt was to try to get Britain to stab us in the back. I suspect that Blair and Jack Straw were the ones who soured this little excursion by telling Kofi not to waste his time.

The Weasels and the U.N. are working hard to split Britain off and use the Blair-Bush relationship against Bush so they can again gain some control or at least grab some oil.

I don't think it's going to work. Tony is going to talk the U.N. talk for domestic political reasons but will then ignore them on some pretext except for the humanitarian aid bit.

Send Kofi to Iraq where he can hand out some sandwiches or do something useful. And menial.

[ApesForEvolution]

Kofi who? UN what? Yawwwn.

[Timesink]

I think the UN and Europe continue to be absolutely stupefied as to just how much we - that is, the Bush Administration - have completely written them off. They've been really sending out the reporters and "analysts" over the last day or so trying to put pressure on the White House, clucking over and over and over that any Iraqi government "imposed by the US" and not imposed approved by the UN will be "illegitimate" in the eyes of the public.

They still don't get it. The Bush Administration knows that we've reached the point where it's them or us. And Bush chooses us.

[Timesink]

GPB?