Posted on 04/15/2002 1:14:28 PM PDT by Sub-Driver
Saddam Urges Iran to Cut Off Oil, Return Planes By REUTERS Filed at 3:33 p.m. ET
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Monday urged Iran to push ahead with a one-month oil embargo in support of Palestinians and return Iraqi planes moved to Iran during the 1991 Gulf War, Iraqi state television said.
``It is high time to say to Iran as it raises slogans in support of the Palestinian issue...that there is nothing more effective in supporting the Palestinian issue than returning Iraqi planes deposited with them,'' the television quoted Saddam as saying during a meeting with officials and engineers.
Iraq said in 1991 that 140 Iraqi warplanes and civilian planes were moved to Iran to escape U.S.-led bombing.
At the time, Iran said only 22 Iraqi planes has landed and that it would not give them back without the approval of the U.N. Security Council.
Iraq is still subject to U.N. sanctions for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, where it was driven out by a U.S.-led coalition in 1991.
Iran on Monday repeated its call for Islamic states to declare a one-month oil embargo against Israel's main allies to support the Palestinians.
``Iraq has stopped oil pumping for a month...and after it had heard from Iran that it (was considering) halting oil pumping for one month,'' Saddam said. ``Iraq did that and stopped oil pumping for a month so we urge Iran to work in the same direction.''
The president also welcomed Tehran's call for oil producing states to give part of one month's oil revenues to the Palestinians.
``Both options are good whether by cutting off oil from America or contributing with (oil) revenues of one month in support of Palestinians,'' Saddam said.
Iraq last week enforced a unilateral oil export embargo, while Libya has said it would back an embargo if supported by other Islamic exporters.
The embargo call by Iran's moderate President Mohammad Khatami echoed that by its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei 10 days ago which largely fell on deaf ears.
``Khatami in a message to the head of the Organization of the Islamic Conference called for a simultaneous cut of oil exports from Islamic oil exporting countries for one month to Israel's main supporters,'' state television said.
He said the embargo would be in response to what he called ''crimes against humanity'' committed by the Israeli army in their incursions into the West Bank.
Iran has not exported oil to the United States since a 1995 embargo was enacted by then U.S. President Bill Clinton.
The Islamic Republic's exports of over two million barrels per day (bpd) of crude, second only to Saudi Arabia in OPEC, were flowing normally, an industry source said.
Man, talk about non sequiturs.
Of course it would give us 140 more planes to destroy on the first day of our Iraq incursion, so maybe it's a good idea.
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