Index
Security Council members "encouraged" by UN-Iraq talks: Annan
28 February – After briefing the Security Council on his two days of talks with a high-level Iraqi delegation, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Council members were encouraged by the process.

"This afternoon after I briefed the Council [members], there was a sense that they generally felt that it was a good sign that the talks have begun and they are encouraged that it will be continued, and would look forward to being briefed," Mr. Annan told the press following the closed-door consultations, which came one day after the UN-Iraq talks wrapped up at the Organization's New York Headquarters.

"Obviously, the Council itself is reviewing the Iraqi dossier, capitals are reviewing it, and I think as we move forward, all of this will have to come together somehow," he stressed.

The Secretary-General said he had briefed the Council on the "broad-ranging" talks, which covered "almost everything on the Iraqi dossier from disarmament to the humanitarian, to Kuwaiti prisoners of war and property, to the question of compensation."

"We did go through the whole gamut, and they had the chance to state what they see as their grievances or the facts as they perceive them," Mr. Annan said of the Baghdad delegation, which was headed by Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohamed Said Al-Sahaf.

Mr. Annan said that during the talks, he had indicated to the Iraqis "the need to comply with the resolutions and the expectations of the Security Council."

The Secretary-General said the process of dialogue would continue this spring. "We have agreed to meet again either in April or May and at that point we will have a chance to go into more details and tackle some of the specific outstanding questions," he noted.

Asked if he had put any proposals on the table during the talks, Mr. Annan replied, "Not at this first and initial round, but it will not be excluded for the second round."

According to the Secretary-General, during the talks, Baghdad presented three key priority areas: the "no-fly zones," the disarmament issue and the question of economic sanctions.

Looking to the future, Mr. Annan observed that next meeting between the UN and Iraq would not take place before April, and expressed hope that some of the outstanding issues would be clarified by then.