Downing Street Says

In answer to questions about the Prime Minister’s remarks about WMD at the Liaison Committee yesterday morning, the PMOS said that as the Prime Minister had underlined at the start of the questioning, we knew two things: firstly, that Saddam Hussein had had WMD and secondly, that we had not yet found any stockpiles. He had then gone on to set out a range of possible explanations as to why that was the case. The truth, however, was that we would only have a better idea once the ISG presented its report – and even then, that might only be an indication rather than a final assessment. Put to him that this was the first time the Prime Minister had said that the WMD might have been destroyed, the PMOS pointed out that he had said ‘might’. The bottom line was that we did not know at this stage. If we did, we would obviously tell people. Asked who would make the final assessment if the ISG report would only be an indication, the PMOS said that it was important to wait for the ISG report in the first instance rather than speculate about the process further down the road.

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Two Blair quotes are apposite here:

"We are asked to accept that, contrary to all intelligence, Saddam decided to destroy those weapons. I say that such a claim is palpably absurd."
(Tony Blair, 18 March 2003)

"I have to accept that we have not found them and we may not find them. He [Saddam] may have removed or hidden or even destroyed those weapons."
(Tony Blair 6 July 2004)

(both mentioned on "Newsnight" yesterday, and in today’s Independent).
Comment by Chris Lightfoot — 7 Jul 2004 on 4:24 pm | Link
The reason that TB and GWB were so sure that Saddam had WMD is because governments of both their countries gave Saddam WMD to use on Iran.

They are both ‘gob smacked’ that Iraq had managed to sell them without either the UK or USA knowing about it.

The question is "Who has got them now?"
Comment by Roger Huffadine — 7 Jul 2004 on 5:19 pm | Link
Well Roger, I’m sure that Tony Blair is JUST the man to answer that question, with a few suggestions from Bubya of course. Who’s top of Bush’s hate list at the minute? Effectively this has given these two lunatics the green light to wage war on anyone they "suspect" of having gained WMD from Iraq.
Comment by PapaLazzzaru — 7 Jul 2004 on 6:12 pm | Link
No; all the easy targets are gone, now, or hardened themselves during the Iraq war.

Besides, Dubya’s up for election, and no American president, not even Dubya, is dumb enough to start yet another war on an election year.

Now, come January, that might be different. 🙂
Comment by Gregory Block — 8 Jul 2004 on 1:07 pm | Link

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» Wednesday, July 7, 2004

Iraq/WMD

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