Bravo, Berlusconi! Grazie tante!
Posted on 09/25/2002 11:27:53 AM PDT by HAL9000
Berlusconi calls for new U.N. resolution that could authorize the use of force against Baghdad
ROME, Sep 25, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi urged the United Nations Wednesday to come up with a "new, strongly worded, unambiguous and exacting" resolution on Iraq that could authorize the use of force if Baghdad fails to comply with it.
The premier warned the international community not to remain inactive before Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's regime, saying inaction "could have incalculable costs in historical terms." However, he also said that war must be avoided if possible.
He gave no indication of what role Italy might play in any possible military action, but insisted the country's national interest lies in its alliance with the United States.
Berlusconi made his remarks during a speech before the lower house of parliament. Later, the premier - who discussed the Iraqi situation with U.S. President George W. Bush earlier this month at Camp David - addressed the Senate.
Berlusconi, who has emerged as a staunch ally of the United States, likened Saddam's regime to Nazism.
"Anyone who lived through World War II ... will recognize in these words the echo of the ravings that led to the disaster of Europe and Germany in the 1940s," the conservative premier said of Saddam's regime.
"Any comparisons made with Adolf Hitler befit dictatorships and international outlaws, but certainly not the great American democracy and its president," he said, alluding to remarks made by Germany's former justice minister, who drew parallels between Bush and the Nazi dictator.
The Italian premier said Italy's efforts were "political, diplomatic and military."
He called for "a new, strongly worded, unambiguous and exacting U. N. resolution which makes short shrift of any evasive, delaying or deceiving tactics for which the Iraqi regime has so far demonstrated an uncommon ability."
The United Nations, Berlusconi said, must indicate to the Iraqi government "what it has to do, in the minutest detail and with the maximum clarity ... and set deadlines by which to do it."
The resolution must also authorize "the measured use of force" if Saddam keeps defying the international community, said the Italian leader.
Berlusconi stressed later in the Senate that he wanted to avoid war. "We will work, with all our force and using every means possible, to avoid a conflict," he said.
Bush is trying to rally domestic and international support to topple Saddam, whom Washington accuses of continuing to acquire weapons of mass destruction. He has found his strongest supporters so far in British Premier Tony Blair and Berlusconi.
On Tuesday, Blair released a long-awaited intelligence dossier which declared that Iraq has a growing arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, and is trying to develop nuclear weapons.
Berlusconi has repeatedly said Baghdad must allow the return of U.N. weapons inspectors, who left Iraq in 1998. In a letter published earlier this month, the Italian premier also said preventive military action was legitimate if Baghdad doesn't change its ways.
On Wednesday, he insisted Italy "is and intends to remain" a "loyal and independent" ally of the United States.
"Our way of life and system of freedoms ... is the one that, as Europeans and as Italians, unites us to the destiny of the United States," said Berlusconi, who is also serving as foreign minister.
His speech drew criticism from the center-left opposition, with many accusing Berlusconi of being submissive to the United States.
Pacifist and anti-global organizations have planned a series of antiwar demonstrations across Italy in the upcoming weeks.
Copyright 2002 Associated Press, All rights reserved
Bravo, Berlusconi! Grazie tante!
I am not sure what you are grumbling about. Can I presume you would prefer the US ignore the UN? It's not going to happen. And even if this President had it in mind, he would still have to look at his strategic plan of what to do when. The fact is the President believes we should topple Saddam. It is also a fact that getting support from key countries in the world will make that easier to accomplish. And it is also a fact that a UN resolution authorizing force will make it a shoo in. For these reasons, this news of support from Italy is welcome news, if you support the President's position on Iraq, and if you are mature enough to accept the world today as it is.
Florence is the most beautiful city in the world, IMHO.
All down the memory hole?
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