UNITED NATIONS, 24 September 2003 — US President George W. Bush called on a skeptical UN General Assembly yesterday to set aside past differences and help in Iraq’s postwar reconstruction but he rejected proposals for a speedy transfer to Iraqi sovereignty.
“Now the nation of Iraq needs and deserves our aid — and all nations of good will should step forward and provide that support,” Bush said, six months after the United States and Britain abandoned diplomacy and went to war without UN backing.
In a speech defending his effort in Iraq, Bush made no apologies for the chaotic postwar situation and offered a shift in emphasis for the US war — Saddam Hussein’s cruelty — in the wake of the failure so far to find weapons of mass destruction.
“As we discover the killing fields and mass graves of Iraq, the true scale of Saddam’s cruelty is being revealed,” he said.
Bush, who faces deep doubts at home and abroad about his Iraq policy, also resisted a speedy transfer of power from US control to Iraqi sovereignty as urged by some key allies, saying he wanted an “orderly and democratic” process. US officials said it could take until next summer to transfer power. “This process must unfold according to the needs of Iraqis — neither hurried nor delayed by the wishes of other parties,” Bush said.
That position put him at odds with French President Jacques Chirac, who wants a quick transfer of power to Iraqis. The two leaders met later and Bush made clear to Chirac that the French proposal was “just not in the cards,” a senior US official said.
US officials were also dismissive of remarks by the president of Iraq’s interim government, Ahmed Chalabi, who told The New York Times he wants the UN General Assembly to give his US-appointed 25-member body sovereign status. The officials pointed out that Chalabi’s Iraqi Governing Council was not a democratically elected body and they want other Iraqis to have a hand in developing Iraq’s new government.
Bush spoke as the United States sought support for a new UN resolution creating a multinational force for Iraq, offering a role for the United Nations that appeared to be more limited than some leaders prefer.
He said the United Nations should assist in developing a constitution, training civil servants and conducting free and fair elections.
In Washington, members of the US Congress hailed Bush’s efforts to get more countries involved in Iraq’s reconstruction but some criticized his refusal to be drawn into a quicker transfer of power.
“Unless the UN is more involved in the administration of the physical and political reconstruction of Iraq, key member nations of the UN will not share in the risks and costs of this effort,” said Sen. Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat.
Bush appeared before the General Assembly one year after challenging the United Nations to stand up to Iraq or risk becoming irrelevant. His job approval ratings have dropped from the 70 percent range during the war to 50 percent, about what where they were before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Americans are increasingly concerned about the daily guerrilla attacks on US troops and the soaring costs after he asked Congress for $87 billion more for the US military deployment and Iraqi reconstruction. Bush said he recognized that “some of the sovereign nations of this assembly disagreed with our actions” but said unity remained on the fundamental principles and objectives of the United Nations.
“So let us move forward,” he said.
Bush said the war was justified by what has been learned about the cruelty of Saddam, whose whereabouts remain unknown in spite of a massive manhunt. He held out the possibility that the promised weapons of mass destruction might yet be found.
“We are now interviewing Iraqi citizens and analyzing records of the old regime, to reveal the full extent of its weapons programs and long campaign of deception,” he added.
