    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
    [November 4, 1996]
    [Pages 2076-2079]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Letter to Congressional Leaders Reporting on Iraq's Compliance With
    United Nations Security Council Resolutions
    November 4, 1996

    Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. President:)
        Consistent with the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against
    Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1) and as part of my effort to keep the
    Congress fully informed, I am reporting on the status of efforts to
    obtain Iraqi compliance

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    with the resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council. This report
    covers the period from September 5 to the present.
        Saddam Hussein's attack on Irbil in late August and his continuing
    efforts to manipulate local rivalries in northern Iraq to his advantage,
    provide new evidence that he remains a threat to his own people, to his
    neighbors, and to the peace of the region. As I detailed in my last
    report, the United States responded to Saddam's military action in the
    north by expanding the Southern no-fly zone from 32 degrees to 33
    degrees north latitude. The U.S. response included strikes against
    surface-to-air missile sites, command and control centers, and air
    defense control facilities south of the 33rd parallel in order to help
    ensure the safety of our forces enforcing the expanded no-fly zone.
        Since my last report, we have further strengthened the U.S. presence
    in the region in order to deter Saddam. In September, we deployed two
    heavy battalions of the Third Brigade of the First Cavalry, one Patriot
    battery and eight F-117 stealth fighter aircraft to Kuwait. We also
    deployed 23 advanced F-16 aircraft to Bahrain and one Patriot battery to
    Saudi Arabia. These forces were sent to the area, in addition to the
    forces that were already deployed to the region, as a tangible deterrent
    to any Iraqi aggression. In early September, the USS Enterprise Carrier
    Battle Group was deployed to the Gulf, joining the USS Carl Vinson
    Carrier Battle Group already there; the USS Carl Vinson Battle Group
    redeployed from the Gulf on October 8.
        The no-fly zones over northern Iraq (Operation Provide Comfort) and
    southern Iraq (Southern Watch) continue to be enforced by U.S. and
    coalition forces. The Turkish parliament must consider renewal of
    Operation Provide Comfort before the end of December.
        We issued strong warnings to Iraq on September 6 and 16, via our UN
    mission in New York, not to challenge our aircraft enforcing the
    extended no-fly zone or to restore damaged Iraqi air defenses. Saddam
    appears to have backed away from his earlier violent rhetoric. We will
    continue to monitor Iraqi action carefully and are well-positioned to
    respond to any future challenges.
        United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 949, adopted in
    October 1994, demands that Iraq not threaten its neighbors or UN
    operations in Iraq and that it not redeploy or enhance its military
    capacity in southern Iraq. In view of Saddam's reinforced record of
    unreliability, it is prudent to retain a significant U.S. force presence
    in the region in order to maintain the capability to respond rapidly to
    possible Iraqi aggression or threats against its neighbors.
        The situation in northern Iraq remains volatile. This Administration
    has continued efforts to bring about and maintain a cease-fire and
    reconciliation between the two major Kurdish groups involved in that
    fighting, including maintaining an active dialogue with both. Assistant
    Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Robert Pelletreau met with
    Massoud Barzani, the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), in
    Turkey on September 18 and October 21. Assistant Secretary Pelletreau
    also met with Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Jalal Talabani
    on October 22, and follow-on meetings with representatives of the KDP
    and the PUK took place on October 30 and 31 in Ankara. In these and
    other high-level meetings, this Administration has consistently warned
    both groups that internecine warfare in the north can only work to the
    advantage of Saddam Hussein.
        In response to the increased uncertainty in northern Iraq, we
    temporarily withdrew the United States Government presence (the office
    of Foreign Disaster Assistance and the Military Coordination Center). In
    September and October, with the assistance of Turkey, we conducted a
    humanitarian evacuation of approximately 2,700 residents of northern
    Iraq whose lives were directly threatened by the Iraqi regime because of
    close ties to the United States Government or the Iraqi opposition. The
    first 2,100 of these individuals, evacuated in mid-September under
    Operation Quick Transit, were employees of United States Government
    agencies with offices in northern Iraq and their families. A second
    group of approximately 600 Iraqi opposition members was evacuated
    October 19-21. All of the evacuees are being processed on Guam under the
    U.S. refugee resettlement program.
        We remain concerned about the safety of local employees of U.S.-
    funded and U.S.-based nongovernmental organizations that remain in
    northern Iraq. We have sought and received assurances from the KDP and
    PUK about their safety. We are keeping their security situation under
    active review and are continuing to con-

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    sider all options to ensure the safety of these employees and their
    families.
        The United States, working through the United Nations and
    humanitarian relief organizations, continues to provide humanitarian
    assistance to the people of northern Iraq. Security conditions in
    northern Iraq remain tenuous at best, with Iranian and PKK (Kurdistan
    Workers Party) activity adding to the ever-present threat from Baghdad.
    We see no role for Iran in the area and continue to advise all concerned
    not to involve themselves with Tehran.
        We also continue to support the United Nations Secretary General's
    decision, in light of the changed circumstances on the ground, to review
    carefully the procedures for implementing United Nations Security
    Council Resolution (UNSCR) 986, which provides that Iraq may sell a
    certain amount of oil in order that they may use part of the proceeds to
    purchase food, medicine and other materials and supplies for essential
    civilian needs and that allocates proceeds to be used to fund vital UN
    activities regarding Iraq. We want to see the resolution implemented, as
    written and intended, in a way that ensures that humanitarian supplies
    to be purchased under the auspices of UNSCR 986 will actually be
    received by the people who need them.
        On October 9, United Nations Undersecretary Gharekhan reported to
    the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that the Government of Iraq
    is now seeking to negotiate aspects of the plan to implement UNSCR 986
    related to the number of monitors and restrictions on the movement of UN
    personnel within Iraq. This action to renegotiate the plan--a plan that
    was agreed to by the Iraqis and that was memorialized in a Memorandum of
    Understanding between the Iraqis and the United Nations on May 20--is
    likely to delay implementation of UNSCR 986 even further.
        The Government of Iraq has, since my last report, continued to flout
    its obligations under a number of Security Council resolutions in other
    ways. Under the terms of the Gulf War cease-fire with Iraq--outlined in
    UNSCR 687--Iraq must grant the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq
    (UNSCOM) inspectors immediate, unconditional, and unrestricted access to
    any location in Iraq they wish to examine and access to any Iraqi
    official whom they wish to interview, so that UNSCOM may fully discharge
    its mandate. Iraq continues, as it has for the past 5 years, to fail to
    live up either to the letter or the spirit of this commitment.
        UNSCOM Executive Chairman Rolf Ekeus briefed the UNSC on his most
    recent, semiannual report on October 17. The Chairman's report outlined
    in comprehensive detail Iraq's past and ongoing efforts to conceal
    evidence of its Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) programs and otherwise
    obstruct the work of the Commission. As long as Saddam refuses to
    cooperate fully with UN weapons inspectors, UNSCOM will be impeded in
    its efforts to fulfill its mandate to ensure that Iraq's WMD program has
    been eliminated. We will continue to fully support the mandate and the
    efforts of the Special Commission to obtain Iraqi compliance with all
    relevant UN resolutions. We will not consider any modification of UNSC
    resolutions.
        On October 1, implementation of the export/import monitoring
    mechanism approved by the Security Council in Resolution 1051 started.
    Resolution 1051 approved a mechanism to monitor Iraq's undertaking to
    reacquire proscribed weapons capabilities; it requires that countries
    provide timely notification of the export to Iraq of dual-use items.
        Iraq also continues to stall and obfuscate rather than work in good
    faith toward accounting for the hundreds of Kuwaitis and third-country
    nationals who disappeared at the hands of Iraqi authorities during the
    occupation or toward the return of all of the Kuwaiti military equipment
    stolen during the occupation, as well as priceless Kuwaiti cultural and
    historical artifacts looted on instructions from Baghdad. Additionally,
    Iraq continues to provide refuge for known terrorists.
        Iraq's repression of its Shi'a population continues with policies
    aimed at destroying the Marsh Arabs' way of life in southern Iraq as
    well as the ecology of the southern marshes. The human rights situation
    throughout Iraq remains unchanged. Saddam Hussein shows no signs of
    complying with UNSCR 688, which demands that Iraq cease the repression
    of its own people.
        The Multinational Interception Force (MIF) continues to enforce the
    sanctions regime against Iraq. In September and the first half of
    October, four north-bound and five south-bound vessels were diverted to
    various ports in the Gulf for sanctions violations. Several of these
    vessels contained illegal cargo hidden beneath humanitarian shipments
    and over 3 million gal-

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    lons of illegally exported Iraqi petroleum products were intercepted.
        The expeditious acceptance of these recent sanctions-violating
    vessels by Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates greatly contributed to
    our strong deterrent posture and provides further evidence that the MIF
    is a valuable resource in sanctions enforcement.
        We continue to meet one of our key foreign policy objectives by
    maintaining the multinational composition of the MIF. New Zealand
    recently sent a ship back to operate with the MIF; the United Kingdom
    maintains a nearly continuous presence with our forces in the northern
    Gulf; and we are hopeful that in early 1997, Canada, Belgium, and The
    Netherlands will all send ships to rejoin the MIF. We are continuing our
    efforts to engage the international community in maritime sanctions
    enforcement.
        Most of the ships engaged in sanctions violations during this period
    were flagged in the United Arab Emirates. At our urging, the Government
    of the United Arab Emirates recently announced stricter penalties for
    sanctions violators. We remain hopeful that these actions will
    discourage operations from the United Arab Emirates that violate UN
    sanctions against Iraq.
        Iran continues to contribute to sanctions violations by allowing
    vessels leaving Iraq to transit territorial waters in order to avoid the
    MIF in the northern Gulf. We have presented evidence of Iranian
    complicity in sanctions violations to the UN Sanctions Committee and
    have urged the Committee to formally denounce these actions.
        Our policy with respect to sanctions enforcement remains firm;
    sanctions continue to send a clear message to the Government of Iraq and
    those who would defy UN resolutions for profit that there will be no
    modification or relaxation of sanctions until Iraq has fully established
    its peaceful intentions by complying with all UNSC resolutions.
        The United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), established
    pursuant to UNSCR 687, continues to resolve claims against Iraq arising
    from Iraq's unlawful invasion and occupation of Kuwait. The UNCC has
    issued over 980,000 awards worth approximately $4.0 billion. The UNCC
    has authorized only limited payments for fixed awards for serious
    personal injury or death because Iraq refuses to comply with all
    relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and UN economic sanctions
    remain in force.
        Currently, the UNCC faces a serious financial crisis in funding
    awards and daily operations. If Iraq eventually sells the full amount of
    oil authorized under the provisions of UNSCR 986, the proceeds of the
    sale will be transferred to the UN escrow account opened for that
    purpose, with 30 percent allocated to the Compensation Fund to finance
    awards and operations of the UNCC.
        To conclude, Iraq remains a serious threat to regional peace and
    stability. I remain determined to see Iraq comply fully with all of its
    obligations under UN Security Council resolutions.
        My Administration will continue to oppose any relaxation of
    sanctions until Iraq demonstrates its peaceful intentions through such
    compliance.
        I appreciate the support of the Congress for our efforts and will
    continue to keep the Congress informed about this important matter.
            Sincerely,

                                                          William J. Clinton

    Note: Identical letters were sent to Newt Gingrich, Speaker of the House
    of Representatives, and Strom Thurmond, President pro tempore of the
    Senate. This letter was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on
    November 5.