[casi] News index, 6-12/4/02

[pbrooke@DELETETHISukonline.co.uk]

News index, 6-12/4/02

OIL POLITICS

*  Iraq Announces Cut in Oil Exports
*  Saudi Arabia Moves to Calm Fears of Oil
Shortage
*  Iraqi Cutoff, Venezuelan Labor Problems Send
Oil Prices Surging
*  Russia Holds Oil Exports Steady
*  SA undecided on oil embargo
*  Lawmaker proposes banning all US imports of
Iraqi oil
*  Iraq's oil cutoff will hurt poor nations first
*  Saddam oil threat justifies drilling in
Alaska, says Bush
*  Jordan and the Iraqi oil
*  IRAQ DIARY, Part 6: Oil and troubled waters
[Pepe Escobar on the atmosphere in the Shi'ite
oil territory around Basra.]
*  Oil slumps as Chavez ousted [This very sad
piece of news is so clearly advantageous to the
US that it is difficult to resist the assumption
that they are behind it. Strike by a privileged
section of the workforce followed by military
takeover in Southern America. Sound familiar?]
*  Imvune boss was named in UN probe into Iraqi
oil deals
*  Oil Companies Lose Faith in Iraq Contracts [It
begins to dawn on the Russian oil companies that
the US will never lift the sanctions until a
situation occurs in which US companies can
compete for Iraqi contracts, and so the deals the
Russians have made with Iraq are worthless.
Unless of course they summon up the courage to
break the sanctions, as they should have done a
long time ago.]


AND IN NEWS, 6-12/4/02 (2)

FINGER POINTING AT IRAQ

*  U.S. delays briefing U.N. on Iraqi arms
*  Blair issues stern warning to Saddam [Account
of Blair's speech in Texas. Wholly inadequate,
like all the other accounts I've seen. The full
text, posted on
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,1-
260742,00.html, was sent to the list in the
Voices mailing for 8th April. It is essential
reading as the statement of a militant and deeply
felt ideology. Far from acting as a moderating
influence on Bush the whole thrust of the speech
is to push him, using the most appalling
flattery, out of any last remaining tatters of
isolationism into the fullest
possible ‘engagement'. Instead of seeing Blair as
Bush's ‘poodle', it might be more appropriate to
see Bush as Blair's rottweiler.
*  Is this man leading us to war with Iraq? [On
Ahmad Chalabi. Includes the extraordinary
statement that Saddam ‘is now immeasurably better
armed than he was in 1990' (see Pepe Escobar in
the Inside Iraq section). Also indicates what is
clearly the thinking of the US State Dept that
Saddam has to be replaced by someone who
resembles him. Takes the INC defectors at their
face value. Doesn't probe too deeply into the
problems faced by the INC in trying to find an
alternative. Nor does it mention the existence of
the INA.]
*  The anthrax hunter [on Hans Blix. The article
admits, in passing, that Richard
Butler's ‘inspectors had passed on secrets to the
US and Israel', without pausing to consider how
utterly damning the statement is.]
*  UK cites Iraq's support for MKO as proof of
sponsoring terrorism London, April 11, IRNA [An
interesting detail, noticed naturally enough by
the Iranians, that the Foreign Office have
branded the Mujaheedin al-Khalq, the major
Iranian opponents of one third of the ‘axis of
evil' as terrorists. We wonder if, when Iran
comes into the cross hairs, the Supreme Council
for the Islamic Revolution will be branded as
terrorist.]
*  Pentagon Responds to Iraqi Offer on US Pilot's
Fate [Speicher affair. The US want ‘anyone,
anytime, anywhere' access; the Iraqis want the
press and S.Ritter present as a guarantee of
propriety.]
*  U.S. military fuels up Mideast bases

INSIDE IRAQ

*  Booming Baghdad in fear of US [Article
suggesting that life in Baghdad isn't so bad
these days. Though it hasn't much to say about
life in Iraq outside Baghdad.]
*  Iraq Diary, Part 7: All guided up with nowhere
to go [Pepe Escobar having great difficulty
seeing what he wants to see in Iraq, and writing
about the difficulties very frankly.]

BRITISH AND EUROPEAN OPINION

*  US-UK mutual admiration society set to oust
Saddam
*  Iraq isn't our enemy [Comment by Richard
Ingrams]
*  BBC under fire for airing Iraqi cancer
claim 'propaganda' [Daily Telegraph complaining
about the BBC reporting on possible effects of DU
on cancer. Great play is made of the Royal
Society investigation two years ago. But this was
exploring the possible effects on soldiers
handling DU in its solid state. The argument on
Iraq turns on the effect of inhaling it in fine
powder form after an explosion. The paper sneers
that no respectable - ie western - scientists
have examined the question, ‘forgetting' that the
Iraqi government had called for a full UN inquiry
and this was blocked by Britain and the US. So,
on the whole, this article is a pretty disgusting
piece of work.]
*  Protesters demand Saddam overthrow [recent
demo in London. They also demanded an end to non-
military sanctions]
*  Book casts doubt on SAS mission [Criticism of
Andy McNab's Bravo Two Zero].
*  Head to head: Action on Iraq [MPs pro and anti
war on Iraq. Peter Lilley, charged with
expressing the pro view, is interestingly
hesitant about it all]
*  German Pol[itician] Speaks on U.S. Relations
[Edmund Stoiber, complaining that the German
government is not sufficiently pro-American]

URLs ONLY:
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.h
tml?in_review_id=545811&in_review_text_id=51177 5
*  Blair needs to learn a lesson about trust
by Peter Kellner
London Evening Standard, 8th April
{The article distinguishes between ‘the Galloway
gang', who are always going to be opposed to the
Crusade against Evil, and ordinary decent Labour
MPs who just want to be sure that nothing will be
done illegally, ie without the support of the UN.
Mr Kellner assures the latter that that is also
Tony's position so everything's OK. He forgets
that we went to war against Serbia without UN
permission. And that ‘UN permission' means
permission of the UN Security Council, which
means in this case, of Russia, China and France.
Is that likely to be forthcoming? Is Mr Bush
likely to care?]

http://news.ft.com/ft/gx.cgi/ftc?
pagename=View&c=Article&cid=FT3XSYBVSZC&live=true&
useoverrid
etemplate=ZZZ99ZVV70C&tagid=ZZZPB7GUA0C&subheading
=UK
*  Defiant Blair attacks critics of his Iraq
stance
by Brian Groom, Political Editor
Financial Times, 9th April
Worth retaining this statement of Mr Blair's
philosophy on political debate: "People will make
their judgments when we make our judgments."


AND IN NEWS, 6-12/4/02 (3)

IRAQI/INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (China, Australia,
Ukraine)

*  Jiang Speaks Out in Favor of Iraq
*  We can't help US in Iraq: Labor [in Australia]
*  Kuchma 'arranged radar for Saddam' [Looks as
though the Ukraine is getting a prostitute
parliament. On a point of detail: do the UNSC
resolutions really forbid Iraq from acquiring
radar equipment which is, quite clearly, purely
defensive?]

NORTHERN IRAQ/SOUTHERN KURDISTAN

*  Al Qaeda terrorists target Iraqi Kurds
[William Safire, now that the Czech connection
seems to have fizzled out in ignominy, is pushing
the Kurd Islamic fundamentalist connection for
all it is worth.]
*  Status Quo Is Least Of Evils [Interesting
extract suggesting that the removal of S.Hussein
might not have much to offer the Kurds in the
autonomous zone, though there is no mention of
the Kurds still living under Baghdad.]
*  Norwegians stuck in Iraq

IRAQI/MIDDLE EAST-ARAB WORLD RELATIONS

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/03/25/10170047
66319.html

*  A sea of blood ... a sip of coffee [Sydney
Morning Herald account of the distribution of
Iraqi largesse to Palestinians which should have
appeared about a couple of weeks ago]
*  Syria - Iraq irrigation cooperation
*  Interview suggests better Iraq relations
[Iraqi Vice President in the Kuwaiti paper As
Seyassah. Unfortunately very few details are
given]
*  Saddam pledges $8.7 million aid to
Palestinians [Includes the following memorable
quotation: ‘"The end of the Jews will be at the
hands of the people of Babylon (Iraq) and they
(Israelis) well know it," Uday said. The
Palestinians "are twisting the arms of the Jews,
but sooner or later we, the inhabitants of
Babylon, will break their necks," he added.']
*  Pentagon, citing Iraq, plans radar sale to
Jordan [A bizarre piece of news. Any normal
observer would think Jordan was much more
threatened by Israel than it is by Iraq (which
has been keeping  it alive despite the malice of
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, by supplying it with
free oil). Unless the fear is of a general Iraqi
push against Israel through Jordan? In which case
could the US really entrust such equipment to
Jordanian hands? Or are they really protecting
Jordan against Israel without admitting it?]

REFUGEES

*  Iraqis win refugee status but no guarantees

REMNANTS OF DECENCY

*  Local couple [in Vancouver] aims to end Iraqi
sanctions


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