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The truth about Iraq's WMD
15/10/2003 22:00 - (SA)
London - The full truth about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programme may never be known, but it may be possible to determine the extent of its ambitions, a strategic think tank said on Wednesday.
The International Institute of Strategic Studies made the assessment at the release of its annual "Military Balance," an authoritative guide to military forces and conflicts around the world.
Asked if the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq means the campaign by a US-led coalition against Baghdad was not justified, IISS director John Chipman said it was too early to conclude such weapons would not be discovered. But, he said, a full picture may never emerge because of the chaos left by the war.
"I don't think one will ever know the truth, because whatever one may or may not find in the next six months will not be proof of what may or may not have been there ... It will be proof of what people can find now. And I think therefore there will always be a degree of uncertainty as to what Iraq may have retained," Chipman said.
Still evidence
He said there was still evidence that Iraq had retained weapons of mass destruction and the search for them could provide evidence of the regime's ambitions.
"What may emerge is a better understanding of the range of Iraq's ambitions which if left unchecked may have allowed Iraq's capacities to mature to a level where their threat to the region really was important," he said.
The review expressed concern over the threat posed by about 120 large, poorly guarded ammunition dumps left in Iraq after Saddam Hussein's downfall, warning they may be a source of weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles for terrorists. The dumps have not been destroyed because of the search for evidence of weapons of mass destruction.
Concern over Iran
"The coalition was unprepared for the scale of the problem, and had no way of securing the quantity of ammunition and weapons storage sites," it said.
Assessing the dispute over North Korea's nuclear ambitions, the review said Washington did not want a confrontation with Pyongyang as long as the communist regime avoids provocative steps such as nuclear weapons tests.
It expressed concern about Iran's suspected efforts to build atomic weapons. Failure to find a solution could lead to other options, including a deal to compensate Iran for giving up its plans or even possible military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, it said.
- AP
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