The role of the United Nations in the U.S. attack upon Iraq

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Repeated inspections but no hard evidence: To Iraqis, site visits are a pointless charade: By Robert Collier, San Francisco Chronicle, 30 December 2002. Every day, as U.N. weapons inspectors fan out across Iraq, the news is the same—no hard evidence of the chemical, biological or nuclear weapons, or the long-range missiles, that the Bush administration insists Hussein's regime possesses.
UN inspectors fear Bush will ignore them: By Peter Beaumont and Ed Vulliamy, The Observer, 5 January 2003. UN weapons inspectors in Iraq fear their work—which has failed to turn up any evidence thus far of weapons of mass destruction—will still be used as an excuse to trigger a US-led invasion of Iraq.
Flawed Report: Iraqi Warheads Found: By William Rivers Pitt, 16 January 2003. The warheads found were empty ordinance and had been declared. The warheads case shows that the inspections do in fact work. CNN intentionally misrepresents the facts.
Powell's bluff—smoke and mirrors: From Economic Democracy, 10 Feburary 2003. Now not only would a US invasion and overthrow of Iraq be ok if WMDs were found, but even if cooperation is not proactive enough and if visual attractions can be used to argue that this unknown item which was seen to be moved at this time from this location to that location, etc, etc, mean that the solution is not to investigate that evidence, but to bomb.
IAEA's Elbaradei Says Iraq Not in Material Breach: By Katherine Baldwin, Reuters, 30 January 2003. The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog said Thursday that, in his view, Iraq was not as yet in material breach of a U.N. resolution on disarmament, contrary to what Britain and the United States have argued.
Text of Blix Report: Reuters, 14 February 2003. The text of the report on Iraq by Chief U.N. arms inspectors Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei to the Security Council.
UN inspectors trash Bush's evidence: From Richard Wallace, US Editor, In New York, The Mirror, 22 February 2003. Claims relating to nuclear research and missiles were fake. Claiming the inspectors had been fed garbage after garbage after garbage by President Bush>s spy chiefs, one said: We>ve better things to do than run around the country chasing bogus evidence.
U.S. privately bargains for U.N. vote: By Eli J. Lake, UPI, 26 February 2003. American diplomats are offering numerous carrots to the smaller states serving on the U.N. Security Council in the run-up to a vote on a new resolution that would pave the way for the United States and its allies to use force to disarm Iraq. A senior State Department official told reporters, We want to be nice to people who are nice to us.
IPS releases report on U.S. arm-twisting over Iraq war: Institute for Policy Studies, 26 February 2003. As U.S. officials intensify their arm-twisting offensive to gather support for a war on Iraq, a new study that examines the specific levers of U.S. military, economic, and political power.
Secret document details American plan to bug phones and emails of key Security Council members: By Martin Bright, Ed Vulliamy in New York and Peter Beaumont, The Observer, Sunday 2 March 2003. The United States is conducting a secret 'dirty tricks' campaign against UN Security Council delegations in New York as part of its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq.
US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war: Secret document details American plan to bug phones and emails of key Security Council members: By Martin Bright, Ed Vulliamy in New York and Peter Beaumont, US plan to bug Security Council: The text; 2 March 2003. The text of the memorandum detailing the US plan to bug the phones and emails of key Security Council members, revealed in today's Observer Sunday March 2, 2003.
America the arm-twister: Ed Vulliamy in New York, et al., The Observer (London), 2 March 2003. In the conflict over a second resolution that could trigger a war, the Middle Six nations on the UN Security Council face a barrage of bribes, persuasion and blatant threats.
American media dodging U.N. surveillance story: By Norman Solomon, Creators Syndicate, 6 March 2003. A British newspaper revealed a memo about U.S. spying on U.N. Security Council delegations. Felt to be more timely and potentially more important than the Pentagon Papers. New York Times sat on the story because it could not get confirmation from U.S. officials.
Leaked memo suggests US manipulating UN: Australian Broadcasting Corporation Broadcast, March 6, 2003. Interview with Observer journalist, Martin Bright. Memo by Frank Koza, chief of staff in the regional targets section of the NSA. that call for phone and email intercepts on foreign UN delegates to provide information that could give US policy makers an edge in obtaining results favourable to US goals or to head off surprises.
Iraq actively cooperated, says Blix: By Masood Haider, DAWN, 6 March 2003. The chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, said on Wednesday that Iraq had actively cooperated with the UN inspectors in the past months and expressed hope that Baghdad would continue to cooperate.
Blix, Baradei delivers positive reports on Iraq: South News, 8 March 2003. Dr Blix praised Iraq for its increased cooperation with inspectors. He added there is no evidence of underground chemical or biological production or storage facilities in Iraq, nor any evidence of mobile weapons laboratories.