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Russia insists to discuss Iraq's debts with legitimate government
Fall of Saddam regime positive: PutinMOSCOW, April 11 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the fall of Saddam regime is a positive result of the US-led war in Iraq while criticizing bringing him down by military means, Russian news agencies reported."It's a positive fact that a tyrannical regime has been removed", Putin said, adding that losses, destruction and human deaths "are negative consequences".
One cannot resolve the problem by means of war and "only nations themselves should determine their fate," Putin said.Putin was speaking at a forum of German and Russian politiciansand businessmen on the sidelines of a summit with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac.He noted that another negative consequence was that international law has been undermined.
"We must set about restoring this system of values and, together with our partners, including the United States and Britain, work on international law," he stressed.He also denied that Russia had supported the Saddam regime.
Leaders of Russia, France and Germany are expected to hold three-way meeting on Friday evening in Russia's second largest city of St. Petersburg to coordinate their positions on Iraq by pressing for the central role of the United Nations in the post-war reconstruction of that country. Enditem
Russia insists to discuss Iraq's debts with legitimate government
MOSCOW, April 11 -- Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday that the issue of Iraq's debt should be discussed with "the country's legitimate government in compliance with the UN SecurityCouncil's resolutions".
The ministry acknowledged that the issue of Iraq's debts is important for Russia, but " it is too early to have any detailed discussions on this issue at this point". The ministry's statement came after US Deputy Defense SecretaryPaul Wolfowitz suggested Thursday that Russia, France and Germany could contribute to postwar reconstruction by writing off Iraq's debts.
It is reported that Baghdad owed at least 8 billion US dollars in Soviet-era debt to Russia.The suggestion of Wolfowitz infuriated Russian politicians.Gennady Seleznyov, speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, or the State Duma, said it was up to Iraq, not the United States, to negotiate its obligations.
"Iraq is not the 51st state of America," Seleznyov said in comments broadcast on Russia's Channel One television. "All debt issues will be resolved only with the lawful government of Iraq".Dmitry Rogozin, chairman of the State Duma's international affairs committee, expressed surprise over Wolfowitz's suggestion.
"In any case, France, Germany and Russia will naturally refuse to write off Iraq's debts," he said.Yevgeny Primakov, head of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry also criticized the idea of writing off Iraq's debts to Russia.Primakov, the former Prime Minister of Russia, insisted that "all debts should be repaid," adding that "this is what Russia is doing now for former Soviet debts".
WHO Urges authorities to restore Water and Electricity to Hospitals, ensure safety of Hospital staff
Without civil order, it is virtually impossible for hospitals to function effectively. The current situation being reported from Baghdad, Basra, Zubair, Kirkuk, Mosul and other towns across Iraq is extremely alarming. The World Health Organization urges the military forces and the remaining civilian authorities to act quickly to restore law and order and to ensure the safety of hospitals and hospital staff. WHO also calls on the civilian population to do everything they can to protect hospitals and medical staff. Those in authority must also do whatever is necessary to restore water and electricity supplies to the cities and towns to prevent further deterioration of the infrastructure and minimise the risk of outbreaks of disease.
Looting of hospitals and medical supplies is totally unacceptable and must be prevented. Without medicines and other supplies, doctors and nurses cannot treat either injured people or those who need ongoing medical care. Those with chronic illnesses such as cancer and pregnant women have a particularly urgent need for continuing treatment and care. The International Committee of the Red Cross reports that Al Kindi hospital in Baghdad has been completely emptied by looters. Even the beds are reported to have been stolen.
It is reported from Basra that after one incident of looting from a hospital, a tank was parked in front of the hospital to prevent any repetition. This helped to protect medical supplies. It is equally important that the safety and security of medical staff are ensured. WHO has received reports of doctors and nurses staying at home to look after their families rather than reporting to work. This is understandable in the current circumstances. However, it is obvious that without medical staff, hospitals cannot function. Therefore, security must be re-established so that people feel it is safe to leave their homes and go to work.
ICRC staff have also been unable to carry out their vital work of distributing water and medicines to the hospitals in Baghdad because of the total lack of law and order in the city. Shortages of medicines and supplies are reported from Baghdad, as well as from Najaf and Karbala.
A truck containing some 13 metric tonnes of WHO medicines and medical supplies left Jordan for Baghdad on Tuesday morning. By the time the driver reached Baghdad, the situation there was changing rapidly and the government had apparently lost control of the city. WHO is now working with national staff and other partners in the Iraqi capital to ensure that the supplies are secured and available for delivery to the hospitals where they are needed as soon as it is safe to do so. Once this supply chain is shown to work, more urgently needed supplies will be made available
Russia, Germany want UN to regain control of Iraq issue: Putin
MOSCOW, April 11 -- Russia and Germany believe that the main task in handling the Iraq issue is to bring it back to the framework of the United Nations, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, Interfax reported. After a meeting with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Russia's second largest city of St. Petersburg, Putin said that heand Schroeder are convinced of "the hopelessness of seeking a military solution" to the crisis.
"Our countries can and must do everything possible to preserve the global system of international law that is based on the supremacy of the UN," he noted. Putin said he and Schroeder believed in the supremacy of international law. The Russian president also advocated an effective European security system. "Europe's stability is largely synonymous with the stability ofour countries as well. So, to counteract well-known new threats, we should doubtlessly work together," he said. Schroeder arrived in St. Petersburg Friday. French President Jacques Chirac will arrive in St. Petersburg later Friday.
The top leaders of Russia, Germany and France -- the main countries opposing US-led war against Iraq -- are expected to coordinate their positions on Iraq by pressing for a "major role" of the UN in the post-war reconstruction of that country. Enditem
Iraqi government is gone: White House
WASHINGTON, April 11 - The Bush administration said Friday that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's government" is gone,"but it is still too early for US President George W. Bush to declare victory in the war against Iraq."There's no question that the regime has lost control and that represents a great turning point for the people of Iraq, as the regime is gone," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters. "The military mission remains under way even though the regime has all but disappeared," Fleischer said, adding there could be "tough fighting ahead."
Baghdad descends further into anarchy, Iraqi troops abandon Mosul
BAGHDAD, April 11 - Public order is deteriorating in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Friday amid a widespread looting spree that gripped one Iraqi city after another while Iraqi troops have abandoned the oil-rich town of Mosul after US forces signed acease-fire agreement with Iraqi troops there.
Car movement was more active Friday than previous days simply because a large numbers of looted official vehicles were being used to carry stolen furniture and other property from government buildings.
Witnesses told news men that the Embassies had not survived the daily pillage They said even taxi drivers were busy escaping with the stolen valuables like TV sets, fridges, air conditioners or even modern cars. A corespondent saw seven people pulling a new government vehicle which came under fire and its driver was killed earlier. A leader of the group said, "On Thursday, I seized a military vehicle with over 100 Klashincov guns on board and now I am heading to the central market place in Baghdad to take more (stolen items)."
More than 25 people were treated for gunshot wounds in the Al-Kindi hospital, one of the biggest medical centers in Baghdad. These people were wounded in clashes during looting in the Iraqi capital, according to hospital sources.
British International Development Secretary Clare Short on Friday called on the US forces to put an end to the rampant looting in Baghdad and elsewhere that broke out when US forces swept into the capital on Wednesday. "It's an absolute priority that US troops should bring order toBaghdad," Short told BBC Radio.
Short said that under the Geneva Conventions, "an occupying power has a duty to make sure that civilians are cared for, to keep order and to keep civilian administration ticking over." Short noted the immediate effort should focus on securing hospitals which are being looted of equipment including heart monitors and incubators.
Also in Baghdad, US Marines destroyed a large Iraqi weapons andammunitions depot in a northern suburb Thursday night, witnesses said.
The missiles and other weapons in the depot, located in Oteifiaon the western side of the Tigris River, caused a huge explosion that shuttered windows, doors, and houses at least half a kilometers away, said one of the witnesses, who owned a house in the area.
One of the missiles exploded not far from the site of the depot,killing at least three US marines, he said.In the north, Iraqi troops have left the town of Mosul after they signed a cease-fire agreement with US forces.
"In the north, a coalition special operations commander accepted a signed cease-fire agreement from the Iraqi 5th Corps commander regular army near Mosul," Brigadier General Vincent Brooks told reporters at the US Central Command near the Qatari capital of Doha.The Iraqi troops left the city in such a hurry that guns, ammunition and uniforms were littered on streets in Mosul, and chaos erupted in the town when residents turned out to grab everything they can following Iraqi soldiers' departure, reports said.
Iran is happy about ouster of Saddam
TEHRAN, April 11 - Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Iranians, like the Iraqis, felt happy to see the downfall of Saddam Hussein, the official IRNA news agency reported on Friday.Addressing thousands of worshipers at Tehran weekly Friday prayers, Khamenei said Iran's position was like that of the Iraqi people, and the ouster of Saddam had been good news for Iran.
"We are very happy that Saddam is toppled ... as happy as the Iraqi nation," he said.Iran and Iraq engaged a 8-year-old war from 1980-1988. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has apparently lost control of his oil-rich country after the US and British coalition forces gained control of most parts of the capital Baghdad in the ongoing war. The fate or whereabouts of Saddam remained unclear.
The Iranian supreme leader also strongly condemned the killing of Iraqi civilians by US-British troops, stressing that the world would never forget such atrocities.
By attacking civilians, the US and Britain had violated the verybasic right of the Iraqi people to live, he said.Khamenei also slammed US plans to install a military government in Iraq, saying that Iran considered such plans as an aggression against the dignity of Islam and the Muslim world.
He described the US-British ambitious plans to share Iraq's resources as "a big mistake and a reactionary step toward the earlydecades of colonialism.""These decisions show the invaders are not aware of the dictatesof time and situation, underscore the need that a future Iraqi government should be democratically elected with no reliance on theoutsiders," he said.
The supreme leader also criticized the United Nations for failing to carry out its duties regarding the Iraqi crisis, saying the UN should have taken more serious measures to stop the war.Commenting on Britain's role in the US-led war on Iraq, Khameneisaid Britain had made "a big mistake", saying that British Prime Minister Tony Blair had once again unveiled the ugly face of Britain to the world in the Iraqi crisis.
He reiterated that Iran's position regarding the US-British campaign against Iraq remain unchanged, terming the war on Iraq as an unprecedented move in international relations.
He further called on Iraqi political forces not to make a strategic mistake by helping foreign dominance over Iraq, which he said would be registered as a disgrace to the nation in Iraq's history.
