France, Russia: Force Not Needed Yet Against Iraq

[thedrifter]

VOA News
07 Feb 2003, 17:57 UTC

French President Jacques Chirac has warned the United States against going to war against Iraq without a second U.N. Security Council resolution, and Russia says it would oppose such a resolution. Both countries are permanent members of the council and can veto any resolution.

Mr. Chirac spoke by telephone with President Bush Friday, and told the U.S. leader he still believes Iraqi President Saddam Hussein can be disarmed without a war.

French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin said President Bush was wrong to say "the game is over" with Iraq and the Security Council should enforce its earlier disarmament resolutions. Mr. Raffarin said, "it's not a game, and it's not over."

Meanwhile, Russia's foreign minister says Moscow would oppose any new United Nations resolution authorizing military action against Iraq. Igor Ivanov says the Kremlin does not see any need for such a resolution at this time. British Prime Minister Tony Blair says Britain would consider taking part in a U.S. led attack on Iraq even if France, Russia or China veto a Security Council resolution.

At the Vatican, Pope John Paul II and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer made a joint appeal for a peaceful solution to the Iraq crisis. Germany, which is the current chairman of the U.N. Security Council but does not have a veto, has consistently opposed using military force to disarm Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.



Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.

Sempers,

Roger

[Super Dave]

You know...i'm getting sick and tired of the French..We could invade France and take it all without firing a shot..

[Rob Parry]

Steady Dave, they're only just getting used to the idea that the Germans will not be coming over the border next time the drongos get itchy feet.
Their Para Regt and of course the Legion are well trained and do a great job kicking backsides in places like Africa, where France has many financial interests. The French have a large incentive in remaining clear of an Iraqi invasion. they have contracts lined up to assist the rebuilding process.
The Germans are just out picking daisies these days, and paying for Schroeders hair dye.

[Sgt Sostand]

Well the French never like the USA cause they Remove us from their land in the 60' all US Troops had to leave their land. i have been in many Country but France is the only Country that made me feel unwanted. i guest they for get what the US did for them.
so i dont really care about the French

[Rob Parry]

Sgt Sostand, sorry but you have made a classic mistake. The French did the US of A a huge favour. They stayed in Canada!:) We stupidly built a tunnel connecting us to the continent. So much for being an Island Race.:devious:

[NEWB]

JUST A THOUGHT!!!!
What would France and Russia do without OUR help? By saying OUR help, I mean, the US and ENGLAND. Nobody over on the continent seems to want to do a thing for them. And can anyone tell me if they have even paid the war debt from WWII.
Just thinking out loud.

[Rob Parry]

I don't believe they have, and we are still paying! It's millions every month. You must have had some mean Banker doing the negotiations on that one.

[NamGrunt68]

PHUC FRANCE AND THE HORSE THEM LIMP WRISTED COC&SUCKERS RODE IN OWN !! We've bailed them sumb!tches azzes out so many times they're pathetic !! Iraq first...then France and if Germany don't stop their bullsh!t them too !!

[Rob Parry]

I know they'll do their usual about face when it's the 11th hour. But it just shows how out of date and corruptible both NATO and the UN have become. Poor leadership allround unfortunately.
Amazing turnaround between Russia, France and Germany as well. You couldn't mention those countries 25 years ago without starting up rearmament factories and placing front line troops on alert.

[arzach]

Originally posted by NamGrunt68
PHUC FRANCE AND THE HORSE THEM LIMP WRISTED COC&SUCKERS RODE IN OWN !! We've bailed them sumb!tches azzes out so many times they're pathetic !! Iraq first...then France and if Germany don't stop their bullsh!t them too !!

Think it may be time to take a posture similar to the days of Pressley O'Bannon...Don't take no sh!t from ANY 3rd rate countries ...We've helped so many different countries, they all think we OWE them something...Seems to me Belgium wuz nothin' but a trench in WW1, The Frogs wuz havin' their azzes handed to them. Ifn it weren't for the U.S. and the U.K. all of Europe would be eatin' kraut and weiner schnizel. The same scenerio on WW2, VietNam etc..:mad:

Heard a theory on Rush Limbaugh today...Neither the french, nor the germans want the world to find out what help and technology they have been supplying to hussein.

Oh, did I forget the Rooskies?? Nah, their hand is in this to. All the world, and even the dipsh!t prostesters in this country say it's about oil; well, that's buffalo chips! france, germany and russia DEPEND COMPLETELY on iraq for their oil. Not to mention the moola they get from sadman's oil for the weapons and technology they supply to iraq.... :mad:

Well, that's my nickel...end of Rant...:evilgrin:

[Rob Parry]

France supplied the Nuclear reactor that Israel atomised, Germany and France supply arms to whomsoever pays. (Remember the Falklands, France was still supplying parts for missiles to Argentina, while our ships were being attacked) No qualms, no questions of an awkward nature. Belgium is renowned for ??????? As I was saying Belgium is ? lost it again!
France and Germany want the reconstruction contracts after the next unpleasantness; Russia is beholden to Iraq due to technology loans and oil supplies, which they don't want the Ayotollahs borrowing. China; now there is the smoking gun. China has major financial and industrial contracts with Iraq. Upset them and they'll pair off with N Korea, again.

[Rob Parry]

Is this a good time to remind people that the English Long Bowmen at Agincourt would give the French two fingers. (When the Frogs captured a bowman they would chop off his digits to prevent him fighting again.)

[arzach]

Originally posted by Rob Parry
Belgium is renowned for ??????? As I was saying Belgium is ? lost it again!


Flanders Fields???

Far as I'm concerned, An alliance is just that. If da frogs, krauts, and whoever doan want to honor it, then screw them. hussein, either aligned with bin laden or not, is dealing terror weaponery to whoever wants it. I doan want the 'smokin' gun' to be the one pointed at us. Old saying...sh!t or git off the pot....:evilgrin:

[Art Petersn]

Provided by Joe Galloway, UPI correspondent and author
> > of "We Were Soldiers Once and Young"
> >
> > This one is definitely NOT tongue in cheek. Sig, the
> > author, was a teen-aged Marine who marched and fought
> > as a rifleman to and from the Chosin reservoir in
> > Korea in 1950. He switched to the Army, and served as
> > a Special Forces officer in Vietnam. After Vietnam he
> > joined the CIA, and went back to Korea. He's been
> > there, done that, and has some specific thoughts on
> > countries that don't "like" us. If you aren't
> > interested in the ramblings of an old man, please
> > delete now. If you're still there, pull up a chair and
> > listen.
> >
> > Is there anyone else out there who's sick and tired of
> > all the polls being taken in foreign countries as to
> > whether or not they "like" us? The last time I looked,
> > the word "like" had nothing to do with foreign policy.
> > I prefer 'respect' or 'fear.' They worked for Rome,
> > which civilized and kept the peace in the known world
> > a hell of a lot longer than our puny two
> > centuries-plus. I see a left-wing German got elected
> > to office recently by campaigning against the foreign
> > policy of the United States.
> >
> > Yeah, that's what I want, to be lectured about war and
> > being a "good neighbor" by a German. Their head honcho
> > said they wouldn't take part in a war against Iraq.
> > Kind of nice, to see them taking a pass on a war once
> > in while. Perhaps we needed to have the word "World"
> > in front of War. I think it's time to bring our boys
> > home from Germany. Outside of the money we'd save,
> > we'd make the Germans "like" us a lot more, after they
> > started paying the bills for their own defense. Last
> > time I checked, France isn't too fond of us either.
> > They sort of liked us back on June 6th, 1944, though,
> > didn't they?
> >
> > If you don't think so, see how nicely they take care
> > of the enormous American cemeteries up above the
> > Normandy beaches. For those of you who've studied
> > history, we also have a few cemeteries in places like
> > Belleau Woods and Chateau Thierry . For those of you
> > who haven't studied it, that was from World War One,
> > the first time Europe screwed up and we bailed out the
> > French. That's where the US Marines got the title
> > 'Devil Dogs' or, if you still care about what the
> > Germans think, "Teufelhunde." I hope I spelled that
> > right; sure wouldn't want to offend anyone, least of
> > all a German.
> > Come to think of it, when Europe couldn't take care of
> > their Bosnian problem recently, guess who had to help
> > out there also. Last time I checked, our kids are
> > still there. I sort of remember they said they would
> > be out in a year. Gee, how time flies when you're
> > having fun. Now we hear that the
> > South Koreans aren't too happy with us either. They
> > "liked" us a lot better, of course, in June, 1950. It
> > took more than 50,000 Americans killed in Korea to
> > help give them the lifestyle they currently enjoy, but
> > then who's counting? I think it's also time to bring
> > the boys home from there. There are about 37,000 young
> > Americans on the DMZ separating the South Koreans from
> > their brothers" up North. Maybe if we leave, they can
> > begin to participate in the "good life" that North
> > Korea currently enjoys. Uh huh. Sure.
> >
> > I also understand that a good portion of the
> > Arab/Moslem world now doesn't "like" us either. Did
> > anyone ever sit down and determine what we would have
> > to do to get them to like us? Ask them what they would
> > like us to do. Die? Commit ritual suicide? Bend over?
> >
> > Maybe we should follow the advice of our dimwitted,
> > dullest knife in the drawer, Senator Patty Murray, and
> > build more roads, hospitals, day care centers, and
> > orphanages like Osama bin Laden does. What with all
> > the orphans Osama has created, the least he can do is
> > build some places to put them. Senator Stupid says if
> > we would only "emulate" Osama, the Arab world would
> > love us.
> >
> > Sorry Patty; in addition to the fact that we already
> > do all of those things around the world and have been
> > doing them for over sixty years, I don't take public
> > transportation, and I certainly wouldn't take it with
> > a bomb strapped to the guy next to me.
> >
> > Don't get me wrong: I'm not in favor of going to war.
> > Been there, done that. Several times, in fact. But I
> > think we ought to have some polls in this country
> > about other countries, and see if we "like" THEM.
> > Problem is, if you listed the countries, not only
> > wouldn't the average American know if he liked them or
> > not, he wouldn't be able to find them. If we're
> > supposed to worry about them, how about them worrying
> > about us?
> >
> > We were nice to the North Koreans in 1994, as we
> > followed the policies of Neville Clinton. And it
> > seemed to work; they didn't restart their nuclear
> > weapons program for a whole year or so. In the
> > meantime, we fed them when they were starving, and put
> > oil in their stoves when they were freezing.
> > In a recent visit to Norway, I engaged in a really fun
> > debate with my cousin's son, a student at a Norwegian
> > University. I was lectured to by this thankless squirt
> > about the American "Empire," and scolded about
> > dropping the atomic bomb on the Japanese. I reminded
> > him that empires usually keep the stuff they take; we
> > don't, and back in 1945 most Norwegians thought
> > dropping ANY kind of bomb on Germany or Japan was a
> > good idea.
> >
> > I also reminded him that my uncle, his grandfather,
> > and others in our family spent a significant time in
> > Sachsenhausen concentration camp, courtesy of the
> > Germans, and they didn't all survive. I further
> > reminded him that if it wasn't for "American Empire"
> > he would probably be speaking German or Russian.

[Rob Parry]

Art, the last paragraph or so by Galloway is interesting, the older Norwegians haven't forgotten. There's a place near Narvik, North Norway, called Gritangen Fjord, there was a major tank battle on the mountain/saddle during WW2.
During the subsequent summers Germans of a certain age were fond of stopping their BMWs there, hauling their families out and pointing out where they had come over the hill in their Panzers. The family outing was usually curtailed as a senior Norwegian got out of his Volvo and blatted Fritz.