[Culturechat] Glasgow Herald--Fascinating Behind the Scenes Account of EU Meeting

[WesTexas@aol.com]

Chirac finding pro-US stances hard to stomach

MICHAEL SETTLE 

AMID the mocha coffee and the petits four, Jacques Chirac lost the argument. 
Shortly afterwards at his press conference, he lost his temper too.

Sources keeping a delicate diplomatic distance in the grand European Council 
dining room reported that Monsieur le President was steadily being forced 
into a corner.

Kofi Annan, the UN secretary-general, fully aware that the international 
body's future is on the line, began by appealing to the 15 EU leaders to act 
together. The international community, he said, demanded that their leaders 
unite around a common line.

He also told it to the heads of government straight: that if Saddam Hussein 
continued with his defiance, then the security council would have no option 
but to face up to its responsibilities - confront the Baghdad regime with 
military force.

At Mr Annan's hawkish stance, Mr Chirac stood up and, with Gallic passion, 
began a defence of the French position.

Flinging his arms up and down, he declared that war was a terrible thing and 
that thousands of innocent people would lose their lives in a second Gulf 
war. "It is a question of life and death," he said.

It was suggested that, at this point, the most dramatic moment of the evening 
occurred. Silvio Berlusconi, the diminutive Italian premier, eyeballed Mr 
Chirac and insisted: "I'm just as concerned about life and death as you are." 

He asked the French president to consider what happened to innocent people in 
Bali and in New York's twin towers.

Then, the normally mild-mannered Bertie Ahern, the taoiseach, interjected and 
pointed out that the only person getting away with defying the will of the 
international community was Saddam. 
He added that the weapons inspectors could not go on indefinitely.

By this time, Mr Chirac was positively steaming at the pro-American forces 
reigned against him. But there was more.

Jan Peter Balkenende, the new Dutch prime minister, underscored the hawkish 
line, saying the issue was Iraq's full compliance and that it was now just a 
matter of weeks, not months, before the matter had to be resolved. "We have 
to reinforce the pressure on Iraq," he said.

Spain's Jose Maria Aznar also called for international cohesion, pointing out 
that the UN had only got so far with the Iraqi dictator by threatening force.

Then, Tony Blair said his piece, deriding the 12 years of deceit by Saddam 
and stressing he had to come into compliance "100%".

Looking at his colleagues one by one, he told them bluntly: "There is no 
intelligence agency of any government around this table that does not know 
that the government of Iraq has weapons of mass destruction."

In a passionate conclusion, the prime minister said: "If Saddam stays, the 
Iraqis will pay with their lives."