CAIRO, 21 April 2003 — Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa warned yesterday he could resign following a row with Kuwait over the war in Iraq.
“People should treat one another with respect, if not, I will resign,” he told Egyptian television.
Three weeks ago, Kuwaiti Parliament Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi accused Moussa of “not respecting the neutrality” that goes with his position and urged him to resign.
The Arab League chief, who has repeatedly condemned the US-led invasion of Iraq, initially reacted by urging Kuwait — Washington’s staunchest Arab ally — “not to stir up confrontations at this crucial moment.”
He explained yesterday that “the difficult times the Arab nation is going through” had prevented him from stepping down.
But Moussa said he would “no longer remain silent” and stressed that “the secretary-general of the Arab League is not a mercenary.”
Kuwait, the main launch pad for the US-British attack on Iraq which started on March 20, has been isolated as a backer of the offensive during recent meetings of the 22-member Arab League.
