Iraq rejects U.S.-British proposal on sanctions

By Dana Garrett
CNN Producer

UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- Iraq responded with a "categorical no" Friday to the question of whether it would resume exporting oil if the United Nations' Security Council continues discussion of a U.S.-British resolution revamping the oil-for-food program.

Riyadh Al-Qaisi, undersecretary in Iraq's Foreign Ministry, told reporters Friday that his country would reject any extension of the oil-for-food program if it allowed for continued discussion of so-called "smart sanctions." He made similar comments Thursday to the Security Council in a two-and-a-half hour speech.

In Friday's comments, however, Al-Qaisi went beyond simply rejecting a new sanctions proposal, saying Iraq would protest even continued discussion of it by continuing to withhold oil exports.

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Iraq faces another United Nations deadline to resolve a standoff over sanctions. CNN's James Martone reports (June 30)

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The Security Council met in closed consultation Friday afternoon to resume discussions on the oil-for-food program, which allows Iraq to sell oil and use the money to buy humanitarian goods and is due for renewal on Tuesday.

The U.S.-British proposal to overhaul the sanctions against Iraq aims to ease restrictions on civilian goods and to shut down smuggling routes.

A State Department spokesman told CNN Friday that China and France recently agreed to a key component of the U.S.-backed British proposal: a core list of goods that Iraq would not be allowed to import because they could potentially help Iraq in building weapons of mass destruction.

After Friday's council meeting, acting United States Ambassador to the U.N. James Cunningham called the agreement on the goods review list by four out of five permanent members a "major step forward in building this process."

British Ambassador Jeremy Greenstock said "the fat lady hasn't even come into the room as far as this exercise is concerned."

Russia is the only one of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- which also includes U.S., Britain, France, and China -- that does not agree to any of the components of the "smart sanctions" proposal.

When asked why the Russians do not support the plan, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "They have strong economic interests they don't think are being protected."

Russia -- Iraq's closest ally on the council -- has offered an alternative proposal to accelerate an end to the sanctions. Al-Qaisi declined to comment on Russia's draft resolution.

Al-Qaisi said his country does not see any advantage in the U.S.-British plan: "On the contrary, it is an institutionalization of a new regime of sanctions that is harsh, that is neo-colonialist, that is overloaded with all sorts of constraints and conditions."

Iraq stopped exporting crude oil earlier in June after the Security Council voted to extend for only one month the oil-for-food program, instead of the usual six months.

If it cannot agree on a sanctions overhaul, the council will likely roll over the existing oil-for-food program again on July 3rd.

CNN State Department Correspondent Andrea Koppel contributed to this report