The Hindu : Need for collective action

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Sep 21, 2002

Opinion

Opinion - News Analysis

Need for collective action

By Bernard de Montferrand

Why is it that, to deal with Iraq, the international community quasi-unanimously wants the competent United Nations bodies to be involved and its rules to be respected? Why is it that France considers it so important to express itself strongly on this point of critical importance?

It is not because of complacency towards Iraq. Nobody intends to support Saddam Hussein and the way he has on so many occasions breached the rules established by the U.N. Security Council and kept its own people under hostage. In the last few years, France, together with many other countries, has consistently supported the unconditional return of the U.N. inspectors to Iraq.

It is not because we are reluctant to use force in order to enforce law. In the last 10 years, France has been actively taking part in peace-keeping operations. Be it in Kosovo or in Afghanistan, to name but two examples, France's involvement with its air force has been second only to the U.S. We know by experience that the use of force is sometimes necessary to defend the law.

But any action to enforce the law must respect the law. Countries such as India and France are deeply attached to this principle. If any country, be it Iraq or any other, represents a threat to peace, the U.N. Security Council must discuss the matter and, if necessary, authorise the use of force. This is the Charter of the U.N. Following these rules is of paramount importance for several reasons:

— The legitimacy of any international action is a precondition of its efficiency. Today, we are all engaged in a major campaign against terrorism which is not yet over. In order to be successful, we need to preserve our solidarity and our unity. In that context, acting unilaterally or ``pre-emptively'' without U.N. approval is a dangerous temptation. It would create a precedent that could be misused by certain countries and divide the world. We know that this risk is important. There is also a growing anti-Western sentiment in the Middle-East and in many countries around the world. Fuelling this sentiment through a unilateral action would be very dangerous for the world stability.

This is why an extensive discussion in the U.N. is the only way to ensure transparency and to explain to the international community why an action is necessary.

- Any use of force has to have a clear aim and a political perspective. Under U.N. resolutions, the possession of any weapon of mass destruction, whether nuclear, biological or chemical, is forbidden for Iraq. If action is taken, it is to enforce that rule and to ensure that Iraq stops constituting a danger for its neighbours and for the region. It is not to get rid of a regime or of a man. Who's next after Saddam? Getting rid of the ``bad guy'' could be an endless task in a world where there are many. Needless to say, such an endeavour would not contribute to world stability. Two weeks ago, the French President, Jacques Chirac, proposed a two-step approach.

— First, the Security Council of the U.N. should draft a U.N. resolution asking for an immediate return of the U.N. inspectors within a strict timeframe.

— Second, in the absence of a positive answer, a second resolution proposing actions should be discussed.

It is encouraging to see that there has been a near-unanimous support for such an intervention of the Security Council and that, after a few days, the Iraqi Government has publicly accepted the return of the inspectors without any precondition. We have to assess this decision. But it is obvious that if results can be obtained with Iraq, it will be thanks to the military might put at the service of the rule of law. We need the political will of the American Government, their resolve and their forces (as well as those of their allies) as much as the moral and legal authority given by the international community. What they cannot obtain individually, they will achieve together.

September 11 has shown, once again, as we live on the same planet, that we need to build together an international society where everybody has a place and can be heard. As we have seen in many crises, no country by itself can any longer solve the problems of the world. This is why we need to work together in a spirit of collective responsibility.

(The writer is French Ambassador to India.)

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