CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY

THE HONOURABLE BILL GRAHAM,

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS,

ON THE OCCASION OF

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS TAKE-NOTE DEBATE ON IRAQ

OTTAWA, Ontario

January 29, 2003

When the House last debated the question of Iraq in early October, we grappled with the  challenges posed by Iraq's disregard for its Security Council obligations. We considered the long  brutal history of Saddam Hussein's regime, the importance to us all of seeing that it is disarmed,  the role of the United Nations in assuring our collective peace and security, and our shared  humanitarian concerns for the people of Iraq. During that debate, I asserted that Canada seeks a  peaceful resolution to this crisis through UN weapons inspectors and through Iraq's active and  complete support in the process of disarmament.

The government's objective remains the same, and our confidence in the UN has been well  placed. The UN Security Council has risen to the challenge posed by Iraq, unanimously adopting  Resolution 1441. This resolution returned weapons inspectors to Iraq and gave the government of  that country one final chance to comply with its obligations. It created a process through which Iraq  could be disarmed peacefully.

At the end of November the inspectors returned to Iraq after a four-year absence, and since then  they have been doing the job that the Security Council gave them. Again, some doubted that they  were up to the task and predicted early failure. Others complained that Iraq was simply being set  up, and that this would amount to a provocative Western espionage operation against Iraq.

But these sceptics were wrong. The inspection teams have been performing well in very difficult  circumstances, carrying out over three hundred searches to date, and we commend them for their  professionalism and dedication. They are gaining access to sites that were off-limits to previous

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MR. GRAHAM - ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS TAKE-NOTE DEBATE ON IRAQ - OTTAWA, ONTARIO

inspectors and they have made important finds, including the discovery of empty chemical weapon  shells. They are maintaining the objectivity that is essential to demonstrating that this process is a  fair chance for Iraq.

In short, the inspectors have shown that this is a viable approach. They have shown that they have  the capacity and the resolve needed to carry out this task, if they are given the support they need  by Iraq. So when Dr. Blix and Dr. ElBaradei ask for more time, this government believes that they  should have it. UNMOVIC [UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission] and the IAEA  [International Atomic Energy Agency] should be given the time and the support they need to  complete their task.

At the same time, as the Prime Minister said, this cannot be an open-ended process. It can  succeed only if Iraq understands that this is its last chance to come clean and acts accordingly.  Unfortunately, the jury is still out as to whether the Iraqi government is willing to embrace this final  opportunity. The inspectors have bluntly criticized the Iraqi government's approach to inspections.  As Dr. Blix said in his report to the Security Council on Monday: "Paragraph 9 of Resolution 1441  states that this cooperation shall be 'active.' It is not enough to open doors. Inspection is not a  game of catch as catch can."

This government believes that Iraq must actively provide evidence and answers to all of the many  questions still outstanding. The inspectors are not satisfied with Iraq's answers about what  happened to tons of deadly nerve agent. They are still waiting for the real story behind Iraq's  ballistic missile program. They need answers about biological and nuclear weapons research.  They are asking these questions because Resolution 1441 demands answers.

And we must remember that Resolution 1441 is not a paper tiger. It warns of serious  consequences if Iraq does not comply. The United States, the United Kingdom and some others  have begun preparing for a potential use of force against Iraq, should this be found necessary; and  Canada has been engaged in prudent military-to-military discussions with the U.S. in order to be  prepared, if necessary. This credible threat of force has been an essential support for diplomacy,  as it keeps the pressure on Iraq to comply. I assure the House, however, that no decision on the  use of force has been taken by the government, and we see it as a very last resort.

This government has been criticized for inconsistencies in its policy on Iraq. However, our policy is  unchanged since the last debate. Some insist that Canada should commit now to the use of  military force before all the evidence is in, or before the UN process has had the opportunity to  reach a conclusion. Others say that Canada should ignore what UNMOVIC and the IAEA may find,  ignore our duties as a member of the UN, and announce now that we will never play any part in  the enforcement of Iraq's Security Council obligations.

That is not what this government believes, and it is not what I believe. Canada must continue to  seek a peaceful resolution to the challenge posed by Iraq's non-compliance with its international  obligations. Our objective is the complete elimination of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction by  peaceful means and in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1441. In this way we believe  that war can be avoided.

This is not the time to abandon the UN process, at the very point when the inspectors are  beginning to make real progress, and when concerted international pressure is finally beginning to  bring about Iraqi cooperation, begrudging as it has been. Inspectors must be given the time they  need to use every tool at their disposal. This is the message I will deliver to Secretary Powell when  I see him tomorrow, and this is the message that the Prime Minister gave President Bush when  they spoke last week. Our solid relationship, based on a commitment to common values, permits

MR. GRAHAM - ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS TAKE-NOTE DEBATE ON IRAQ - OTTAWA, ONTARIO

this sort of exchange and allows for a respect for each other's views, together with an  understanding of each other's concerns.

Allow me to address the possibility that force will be used to back up the Security Council  resolutions on Iraq. It may well be that the weapons inspectors will find evidence of Iraqi non-compliance. Certainly, the record of Iraqi compliance is not good. Should that happen, we must be  ready to back up our words and principles with action. The Security Council has unanimously  agreed: Iraq will face serious consequences if it violates its obligations. Even as we recognize that  war is not inevitable, we must also accept that a peaceful outcome depends critically on whether  Iraq begins to cooperate fully and actively. We must not rule out a peaceful resolution, but neither  can we rule out the use of force.

Canada and the United States are friends and allies. We have a long history of cooperation and  partnership, and on matters of values we see eye-to-eye. But friendship and alliance do not imply  that we two sovereign countries must adopt identical approaches to all issues. It is in the  discussion and debate of differing views and the pursuit of varied but complementary approaches  that we are able to offer each other the best kind of advice and support. An independent foreign  policy for Canada benefits the United States as well as ourselves. We value our differences, as  does the United States, and our partnership is the better for them. On Iraq, we share the same  goal: the complete and verified disarmament of the country through a peaceful UN process.

Last night, President Bush, when speaking of how the United States will make up its mind, said,  "Yet the course of this nation does not depend upon the decisions of others." Canadians expect no  less of their own government. And why would Americans expect any less from us than they  demand from themselves?

This government is working closely with our friends and allies around the world who share our  desire for a peaceful outcome, and our goal of achieving this through our multilateral institutions.

The countries of the region have been engaged in important efforts to convince Saddam Hussein  that for the good of his people and the stability of the region, Iraq must comply with its international  obligations. More than anyone, they are conscious of the terrible consequences of war for the  region, but also of the threat that weapons of mass destruction pose for Iraq's neighbours. They,  like us, look forward to a time when Iraq could be reintegrated into the international community as  a peaceful and prosperous nation. The Iraqi people deserve no less.

Many have asked whether Canada will insist on a second resolution before supporting the use of  force against Iraq. To my mind, the pertinent question to ask is whether the current process,  established by the existing Council Resolution 1441, enables us to address the two fundamental  issues we face: whether Iraq is in violation of its disarmament obligations to the world community;  and if the use of force is the only way to bring it into conformity. And Resolution 1441 does indeed  enable us to address these issues. The Resolution has returned inspectors to Iraq, strengthening  their hand and giving them new tools. Resolution 1441, with its clear statement of the serious  consequences for non-compliance, together with a credible threat of force, has compelled the  measure of Iraqi compliance we have seen to date. The Resolution lays out a process by which  the Council will receive reports from the inspectors and then consider the appropriate course of  action, which might involve another resolution. Resolution 1441 has brought us to where we are  today, just as it lays out the way forward. Let us focus on using 1441 to its full extent before we  speculate about what else may or may not be necessary.

The United Nations Security Council, with its unique mandate to ensure the peace and security of  the world community, was created to address precisely the kind of situation we find ourselves in

MR. GRAHAM - ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS TAKE-NOTE DEBATE ON IRAQ - OTTAWA, ONTARIO

today. And it is the most credible forum in which to confront the two fundamental issues we face. It  is doing so. And in so doing, it has the support of this government.

War is not inevitable. But for conflict to be avoided, Iraq must comply fully and actively with the UN.  Canada will stand together with the world community to see that it does. Here I can only conclude  by echoing the view of Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday, when he said, "I really hope that  Iraq will comply, and we will be able to get on and disarm Iraq peacefully. I have not given up on  peace, and you shouldn't either."

Thank you.

