December 15, 10

NEWS / Iraq: Security Council ends several war-related mandates in milestone session

15 December 2010 – The Security Council today ended several United Nations mandates on Iraq stemming from the 2003 war, including those on weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), in what Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called a “milestone” on the country’s path to stability and normality.

“Its people have known tremendous hardship,” he told the 15-member body. “They continue to struggle with insecurity and appalling violence. They lack jobs and basic services. But today we recognize how far the country has come in key aspects of its journey to normalize its status in the community of nations.”

Citing “the difficult history” on WMDs in Iraq, he hailed the lifting of its remaining obligations on the issue following its pledge to remain free of such weapons, enshrined in its constitution, and its accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Biological Weapons Convention, the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Saddam Hussein’s WMD activities were one of the reasons given for the United States-led invasion of 2003. None were subsequently found.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37076&Cr=iraq&Cr1=