Chief weapons inspector Hans Blix has told the UN that Iraq could produce letters of credit (L/Cs) amongst other documents to create confidence that it has no more weapons of mass destruction or proscribed activities relating to such weapons.

"Iraq must present credible evidence," Blix said in his official 10 January 2002 briefing to the UN Security Council. "It cannot just maintain that it must be deemed to be without proscribed items so long as there is no evidence to the contrary," he added.

Questions of import

The Executive Chairman of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) also told the Security Council that he is concerned about several imports into Iraq, including a relatively large number of missile engines, some imported as late as 2002. These trades are apparently in violation of the relevant resolutions regulating import and export to Iraq.

"We have yet to determine the significance of these illegal imports," said Blix who is also concerned about the import of bacterial growth media and aluminium tubes as well as a chemical agent known as VX.

Evidence

"Doubts will not disappear by the resubmission of old documents or by conversations between teams of experts," said Blix who added that the requirement for documentary evidence is well known to Baghdad.

"Iraq is very familiar with the fact that only declarations supported by evidence, will give confidence about the elimination of weapons. In this respect we have not so far made progress," he said.

Declaration insufficient

The chief weapons inspector maintained that most of the evidence produced by Baghdad in its December declaration is "poor in new information about weapons issues" while new documents "do not seem to contribute to the resolution of outstanding questions."

The declaration repeats the assertion that there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and that there is no more evidence to present.

Confidence

Blix argues that in order to create confidence that it has no more weapons of mass destruction or proscribed activities relating to such weapons, Iraq must present credible evidence.

"A person accused of the illegal possession of weapons may, indeed, be acquitted for lack of evidence, but if a state, which has used such weapons, is to create confidence that it has no longer any prohibited weapons, it will need to present solid evidence or present remaining items for elimination under supervision," he said.

"Evidence can be of the most varied kind," said Blix who urged Iraq to produce evidence that could include L/Cs, or budgets, production records, destruction records, transportation notes, or interviews by knowledgeable persons, "who are not subjected to intimidation."

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