What are the UN sanctions on Iraq?
Here we look at some frequently asked questions about UN sanctions against Iraq. The United States intends to introduce a Security Council resolution to lift them by June 3, when the UN oil-for-food program has to be renewed. What are the sanctions? The sanctions were imposed when then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s army invaded Kuwait in August 1990. They forbid free trade, financial dealings, flights and the import of any goods but food and medicine. After the 1991 Gulf War, the Security Council adopted a 3,900 word complex cease-fire resolution, number 687, which, in effect, dictated Iraq’s surrender. The measure set up the world’s most intrusive inspection system to rid Iraq of ballistic missiles and nuclear, chemical and biological weapons as a condition for lifting the oil embargo. At least 16 resolutions, most of them drafted or sponsored by the United States and Britain, expanded on these principles. What is the oil-for-food programme? To ease the impact of the sanctions on o
