Authority of UN must be upheld

EUROPEAN Parliament president Pat Cox is quite right in criticising British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the four other prime ministers who broke ranks with their EU colleagues in a public letter supporting the American stance in relation to Iraq.

In an interview today in the Irish Examiner, he makes the very valid point that the actions of EU member States are in danger of undermining the authority of the United Nations, either by appearing to favour taking no action against Iraq, or a seeming willingness to act without a UN mandate.

Whatever action, if any, is to be taken against Iraq must be predicated on the report of the weapons inspectors to be delivered to the UN Security Council next Friday and the political judgment of the members of that body on Iraq’s compliance, or otherwise, with the terms of Resolution 1441.