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23 February 1998

• Memorandum of Understanding between the United Nations and the Republic of Iraq

• The Internet Gears Up for Conflict With Iraq TAKING IN THE SITES / By SETH SCHIESEL The New York Times February 23, 1998 - There is far more detailed information about Iraqi forces available outside of the government. The Federation of American Scientists runs perhaps the most complete site, with pictures of Iraqi military installations and information on Iraq's missile capabilities.
• JOINT PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN AND HIS EXCELLENCY DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER OF IRAQ TAREQ AZIZ Baghdad, 23 February 1998 -- I am pleased to announce that after detailed and intensive discussions with the Iraqi authorities culminating in a meeting with President Saddam Hussein on Sunday afternoon I have concluded an agreement with the Government of Iraq on the issue of the United Nations weapon inspections.
• [EXCERPT] U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing -- 23 February 1998 -- IRAQ Secretary: Briefing by Amb Richardson / Consultations With Foreign Policy Team Agreement: Transmitted to New York / US Discussions / Details / Acceptance / Next Steps / Reversing Course, Not Negotiating / Russian Rpt of New UN Resolution / Relevant UN Resolutions / Secretary's Talks with Russian FM Primakov UNSCOM: Aims / Access to Sites / Name Change / Relevant UN Resolutions / Experts / US Position on UNSCOM's Work Oil-for-Food: New Resolution / Linkage to Agreement US Military Forces: Remain in Place / Acting Alone IRAN / RUSSIA US Position on Nuclear Cooperation / Complete Bushehr Plant / Impact on Total Sanctions Decision
• IRAQI U.N. AGREEMENT Voice of America 23 February 1998 - THE PRECISE WORDING OF THE DOCUMENT IS BEING HELD SECRET UNTIL LATE TUESDAY WHEN IT WILL BE DISTRIBUTED TO THE U-N SECURITY COUNCIL.
• IRAQ AGREEMENT REACHED Voice of America 23 February 1998 - UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY KOFI ANNAN AND IRAQI DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER TARIQ AZIZ SIGNED AN AGREEMENT MONDAY IN BAGHDAD TO ALLOW THE RESUMPTION OF U-N INSPECTIONS OF SUSPECTED IRAQI WEAPONS SITES. IRAQI DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER TARIQ AZIZ CALLED IT A GREAT VICTORY FOR HIS COUNTRY.
• KOFI ANNAN AND IRAQI LEADERS REACH DIPLOMATIC SOLUTION TO STANDOFF 23 February 1998 - United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and Iraq's leadership on Sunday (2/22/98) concluded an agreement aimed at resolving the standoff over weapons inspections.
• IRAQ INSPECTIONS AGREEMENT Voice of America 23 February 1998 - IRAQ HAS AGREED TO THE RESUMPTION OF UNRESTRICTED U-N INSPECTIONS OF ITS WEAPONS SITES -- A MOVE EXPECTED TO AVERT THE THREAT OF RENEWED MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST THAT COUNTRY.
• EXPERTS SUSPICIOUS OF IRAQI VX WEAPONS PLANS 23 February 1998 By Judy Aita USIA United Nations Correspondent -- Iraq was able to produce between 50 and 100 tonnes of the deadly chemical warfare agent VX before the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and currently has the know-how, equipment and possibly the chemicals to manufacture as much as 200 tonnes of VX, a group of international chemical weapons experts has concluded.
• IRAQ/ WEAPONS Voice of America 23 February 1998 - A TEAM OF INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL EXPERTS SAY IRAQ MAY NOW HAVE THE CAPABILTY TO PRODUCE TONS OF A DEADLY NERVE GAS.
• CLINTON/IRAQ/MILITARY Voice of America 23 February 1998 - PRESIDENT CLINTON CONTINUES TO HOLD OUT THE THREAT OF MILITARY ACTION AGAINST IRAQ, IF SADDAM HUSSEIN FAILS TO KEEP HIS NEW PROMISES TO U-N SECRETARY GENERAL KOFI ANNAN.
• CLINTON/IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - THE ADMINISTRATION IS WITHHOLDING SUBSTANTIVE COMMENT ON THE TURN OF EVENTS.
• TRANSCRIPT: CLINTON REMARKS ON UN-IRAQI AGREEMENT 23 February 1998 -- President Clinton has welcomed the agreement Iraqi President Saddam Hussein signed February 23 in Baghdad with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, saying he hopes it will be prove to be "the step forward we have all been looking for."
• TRANSCRIPT: SECSTATE ALBRIGHT "ABC-TV" INTERVIEW ON IRAQ 23 February 1998 - The only way to solve the crisis with Iraq diplomatically "is for UNSCOM, the United Nations inspectors, to have full, unfettered, unconditional access to all the sites that they need to; and ... the integrity of UNSCOM has to be maintained. They have to have operational control over the inspections," Secretary Albright stressed.
• [EXCERPT]: STATE DEPARTMENT NOON BRIEFING 23 February 1998 -- State Department Spokesman James Rubin briefed. As of noon February 23, U.S. officials were still assessing the agreement brokered by U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan with Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, Rubin said.
• [EXCERPTS]: WHITE HOUSE DAILY BRIEFING 23 February 1998 - White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry briefed. "There will be a number of issues that will be raised in the course of the conversations tomorrow. One example would be diplomats accompanying the UNSCOM teams.
• CLINTON HOPES IRAQ WILL HONOR ARMS INSPECTION AGREEMENT 23 February 1998 By Wendy S. Ross USIA White House Correspondent -- President Clinton says he hopes the agreement on arms inspections signed February 23 in Baghdad by Iraq's Saddam Hussein and United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan "will prove to be the step forward we have been looking for, but the proof is in the testing."
• CONGRESS-IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - U-N SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN'S AGREEMENT WITH IRAQ BEING RECEIVED COOLLY IN THE U-S CONGRESS.
• WEINBERGER-IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - FORMER U-S SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CASPAR WEINBERGER SAYS HE IS VERY SKEPTICAL THAT SADDAM HUSSEIN WILL LIVE UP TO THE NEW AGREEMENT HE'S WORKED OUT WITH THE UNITED NATIONS.
• ANNAN SECURES DEAL WITH IRAQ: HOW WILL U.S. REACT? 23 February 1998 USIA Foreign Media Reaction Report - Reports that UN Secretary General Kofi Annan had reached an agreement with Iraq that might settle the dispute over UN inspections topped the news abroad, although deadlines did not give many analysts time to assess the deal's implications. The majority of those who did were relieved that a U.S. strike may have been averted, but remained uncertain about what the U.S. reaction might be once the details are revealed.
• FRANCE / IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - FRENCH OFFICIALS CONSIDER THE AGREEMENT AS A VINDICATION OF THE FRENCH PUSH FOR A PEACEFUL SOLUTION TO THE IRAQI ARMS CRISIS.
• E-U / IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - THE E-U MINISTERS REMAIN CAUTIOUS UNTIL FULL DETAILS OF THE DEAL HAVE BEEN PRESENTED TO THE U-N SECURITY COUNCIL.
• CHINA/IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - CHINA HAS WELCOMED A DEAL BROKERED BY U-N SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN WITH IRAQ, SAYING IT HOPES THE AGREEMENT WILL DISPERSE THE WAR CLOUDS GATHERING OVER THE PERSIAN GULF.
• RUSSIA / IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - RUSSIAN PRESIDENT BORIS YELTSIN HAS EXPRESSED SATISFACTION WITH THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN IRAQ AND THE UNITED NATIONS. V-O-A'S PETER HEINLEIN REPORTS FROM MOSCOW. MR. YELTSIN SAID HE IS CONFIDENT THE IRAQ CRISIS IS OVER.
• IRAQ / ARAB REACT Voice of America 23 February 1998 - NEWS OF A BROKERED DEAL IN BAGHDAD HAS BROUGHT SIGHS OF RELIEF AROUND THE MIDDLE EAST.
• IRAQ / ARAB REACT Voice of America 23 February 1998 - NEWS OF A BROKERED DEAL IN BAGHDAD HAS BROUGHT SIGHS OF RELIEF AROUND THE MIDDLE EAST WHERE OPPOSITION TO A U-S MILITARY STRIKE AGAINST IRAQ HAS BEEN THE STRONGEST.
• KUWAIT REACTION Voice of America 23 February 1998 - WORD OF IRAQI AGREEMENT ON A DEAL THAT MAY DIFFUSE THE CURRENT CRISIS OVER WEAPONS INSPECTIONS BROUGHT A MIXED REACTION IN THE REGION MOST AFFECTED.
• KUWAIT REACTION Voice of America 23 February 1998 - REACTION IN THE GULF REGION TO WORD OF IRAQ'S AGREEMENT WITH THE UNITED NATIONS TO RESUME WEAPONS INSPECTIONS RANGED FROM RELIEF TO DISAPPOINTMENT SADDAM HUSSEIN WILL LIKELY ESCAPE MILITARY ATTACK.
• JORDAN/IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - JORDAN'S GOVERNMENT HAS WELCOMED THE ACCORD BETWEEN IRAQ AND THE UNITED NATIONS ON ACCESS TO IRAQI WEAPONS SITES.
• ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS / IRAQ Voice of America 23 February 1998 - ISRAELIS AND PALESTINIANS WERE RELIEVED BUT CAUTIOUS MONDAY AFTER THE ANNOUNCEMENT IN BAGHDAD APPEARED TO REMOVE THE POSSIBILITY OF IRAQI MISSILE ATTACKS.
• IRAQI EXILES Voice of America 23 February 1998 - THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN IRAQ AND THE UNITED NATIONS OVER ACCESS TO IRAQI WEAPONS SITES IS NOT LIKELY TO HAVE MUCH IMPACT ON THE ESTIMATED THREE-MILLION IRAQIS WHO HAVE FLED THE COUNTRY DURING THE ALMOST 30-YEAR RULE OF SADDAM HUSSEIN.
• FACT SHEET: IRAQ PUBLIC DIPLOMACY: FACTS ABOUT SANCTIONS 23 February 1998 - Facts about UN sanctions and the oil-for-food program.
• E-3 Sentries join in Gulf buildup Released: Feb 23, 1998
•  Saddam Drops Most Demands on Weapons Inspections The New York Times 23 February 1998
•  U.S. Urges Caution on Baghdad Accord The New York Times 23 February 1998
•  Residents of Baghdad Appear Both Fatalistic and Defiant The New York Times 23 February 1998
•   Saddam Said to OK Inspections of 'Off-Limits' Sites The New York Times 23 February 1998

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