PRESS BRIEFING BY CHAIRMAN OF IRAQ SANCTIONS COMMITTEE
Press Briefing
PRESS BRIEFING BY CHAIRMAN OF IRAQ SANCTIONS COMMITTEE
19970224
FOR INFORMATION OF UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT ONLY
The Chairman of the Security Council Committee established under resolution 661 (1990) to monitor the sanctions against Iraq, Antonio Victor Martins Monteiro (Portugal), told correspondents at a press briefing on Friday, 21 February, that, in compliance with the "oil-for-food" formula of resolution 986 (1995), the Committee had so far approved 31 of the 35 applications for the sale of petroleum and eight contracts for humanitarian supplies to Iraq out of 21 applications. He expressed hope that the supplies would reach Iraq by the middle of March.
The resolution authorized States to permit the import of up to $1 billion of Iraqi petroleum and petroleum products every 90 days to meet Iraqi humanitarian needs. It also asked the Sanctions Committee to develop expedited procedures for implementing the resolution.
The Chairman informed correspondents that, so far, about 38.4 million barrels of oil had been sold and that the amount in the escrow account set up under the provisions of resolution 986 (1995) had grown to $195 million. Although it would take some time for the Australian wheat and the Thailand rice to get to their destinations, the Committee members were making efforts to speed up the procedures for ordering and delivering them.
Providing some details on the discussions of the Committee, Mr. Monteiro started by informing correspondents that the atmosphere in the Committee had improved, with its members being driven by a sense of commitment to provide humanitarian supplies to the Iraqi people. That sense of purpose had enabled Committee members to overcome their differences and agree to speed the delivery of supplies.
The Committee, he went on, had been informed by the Secretariat that all the observers needed to monitor the "oil-for-food" transactions in Iraq would be in the field by the middle of next month. With that information at its disposal, the Committee had discussed how to improve and expedite the procedural aspects of the implementation of resolution 986. Agreeing that some points would have to be clarified, the members decided to hold an informal meeting in the Portuguese Mission to the United Nations to iron them out. If they agreed on those points, they would proceed to speed up the procedure for ensuring that humanitarian supplies reached the people of Iraq quickly. The Committee would try to overcome the problem of "oil and no food" that had been discussed in some newspapers, he added.
The Chairman then said that the Committee had discussed Iraq's request to have some of its accounts in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab
Sanctions Briefing - 2 - 24 February 1997
Emirates unfrozen to enable it to facilitate the transportation of its pilgrims to Mecca with Iraqi Airways aircraft. The Committee agreed to relay the Iraqi request to those States, gauge their views and then determine what further action to take on the matter. "But, what I can say is that there is a negative mood towards the use of Iraqi aircraft", he added.
After considering a request from the World Health Organization (WHO) that the Committee should authorize an overall arrangement for medical evacuation flights in the case of an outbreak of diseases, Mr. Monteiro said the Committee decided that the case-by-case method of considering the evacuation of sick persons should be retained until the need for an overall arrangement was proved. At present, he said, the need for such an overall plan did not exist, as there were few requests for medical flights.
According to the Chairman, the Committee also considered a request by Iraq that priority be accorded to applications to ship cooking oil, sugar, toilet soap and plastic bags. While the Committee's members had been favourably disposed towards the request, they expressed a desire to have the Department of Humanitarian Affairs ascertain the need to prioritize those items. Once the Department confirmed such a need, the Iraqi request would be approved by Committee members, who wanted to ensure that the distribution of supplies accorded with resolution 986.
In a question-and-answer session, the Chairman was asked whether the Committee would order Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates to release Iraqi funds they had frozen or simply seek their views on the matter. Replying, Mr. Monteiro said the Committee did not have the power to order those States to release the funds. It would only inform them of Iraq's request.
In response to a question as to whether the countries could release the funds without the Committee's permission, he said they could not. However, if the States showed a favourable disposition towards the Iraqi request, the Committee would examine their views and, if the members so decided, the amounts could be released and channelled through United Nations accounts. About $50 million was being sought by the Iraqi Government.
Asked for details on the eight supply contracts approved by the Committee, he said they were: one contract for tea from Jordan; one for wheat from Australia; one for rice from Thailand; two contracts for wheat and one for infant formula from France; a contract for the supply of the same product from Tunisia; and one for the supply of cleaning products from the United Kingdom.
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