John Major leads calls for inquiry into Iraq conflict

[T_i_B]

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article2079340.ece

Sir John Major led calls for an independent inquiry into Tony Blair's decision to go to war in Iraq after the revelations by a former British senior diplomat that contradict the Prime Minister's case for the conflict. The former Conservative prime minister said the inquiry was needed into the "new information" reported yesterday in The Independent from the secret report to the Butler inquiry by Carne Ross, a key negotiator for Britain at the UN.

"The more we learn about the beginning of the war, the more uncertain its rationale seems to be," Sir John said. He said there was "no doubt" that the new Democrat-dominated US Congress would hold an inquiry into the war.

"I do think it is important in due course we do precisely the same," he added. "I would like an independent inquiry that would examine all the information dispassionately."

The Prime Minister's official spokesman rejected the calls, saying there had already been four inquiries. But Labour MPs joined the demands last night, urging Gordon Brown to call an inquiry when he takes over.

[DoYouEverWonder]

1. So where was John Major before the war?

probably drumming up support for the invasion for his friends at Carlyle Group.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. He supported the invasion, but called for an inquiry in July 2003

Making his inquiry call, Mr Major said he had supported the war, partly because he knew Iraq had possessed weapons of mass destruction in the early 1990s.

Like many others, he had accepted the government's warnings but said "quite a few" of those alerts were now being questioned.

"It has to be cleared up because it is in the government's interest to clear it up," said Mr Major.
...
"It is essential that the word of government and the intelligence services is readily accepted by Parliament and the public."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3054549.stm

[Kipper58]

4. Well, he certainly knew SOMETHING about Iraq!

The gall of this man is almost beyond belief! John Major was up to his neck in the Matrix Churchill affair, otherwise known here in Britain as the "arms to Iraq scandal". For a full understanding of the extent of the Conservative Party's hypocrisy over the question of whether Saddam had WMD, look at this Wikipedia entry about their collusion with a company that was actively breaking sanctions against selling weapons to Iraq.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms-to-Iraq

There's been a complete display of amnesia about this in the British media whenever Conservative spokesmen spout off about how we went to war on a lie.

[jobycom]

6. Slick, isn't he?

He encourages the invasion, gets all the perks that went along with it for investments, then as the wind shifts and he has already gotten what he wanted, begins to lead the charge against the PM who went along with the war--just in time to make political hay for his party. If he plays it right, his party sweeps back in, and they do the same things Blair did, but claim it is all an attempt to clean up the mess Blair created. Like our own buttinsky former leaders are doing. BushDaddy and Baker are blaming W for making mistakes, yet suggesting a plan of action which somehow does exactly what W wants to do anyway--send more troops and money, and stay the course.

Wasn't there a Who song about that?

[Sherman A1]

3. Saw John Major speak once a couple of years ago

seemed to be very sharp and well informed. This could be interesting........ :popcorn:

[JoFerret]

5. "Britain never thought Saddam as threat - diplomat"

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1973311,00.html

The British government never believed Saddam Hussein posed a threat to British interests and warned the US that toppling him would lead to "chaos", according to a Foreign Office diplomat closely involved in negotiations in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq.

Damning repudiation of the government's public claims in the run-up to the war is contained in secret evidence to Lord Butler's committee on the abuse of intelligence over Iraq by Carne Ross, a diplomat at Britain's UN mission in New York.

His evidence, in which he says the government privately assessed that Iraq possessed no significant quantity of weapons of mass destruction, has been published on the Commons foreign affairs committee website. Mr Ross gave evidence to the group last month but some MPs had been reluctant to have it published.

...

"At no time did assess that Iraq's WMD (or any other capability) posed a threat to the UK," he told the Butler committee. "On the contrary, it was the commonly-held view among the officials dealing with Iraq that any threat had been effectively contained ... At the same time, we would frequently argue, when the US raised the subject, that 'regime change' was inadvisable, primarily on the grounds that Iraq would collapse into chaos."
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