Friends of Saddam

Congress Probes BNP Docs

AP - Congress Probing U.N. Oil-For Food Program

NEW YORK - Congressional investigators examining "a semitrailer truck load" of subpoenaed documents are trying to determine whether lax monitoring at a French bank that held more than $60 billion for the U.N. oil-for-food program facilitated illicit business deals by the former Iraqi government, officials told The Associated Press.

Although BNP Paribas isn't the target of the probe involving companies and individuals in 50 countries, the documents could provide a road map to alleged corruption at the United Nations (news - web sites) and by politicians from France, Russia, Britain, Indonesia and Persian Gulf states who have been implicated.

The three congressional panels that subpoenaed BNP Paribas documents are looking into whether the bank met minimum standards that require financial institutions to identify customers, partly to prevent money laundering. The committees are among at least five in Congress investigating allegations of U.N. corruption and reports that Iraqis skimmed billions of dollars in kickbacks through deals administered by the United Nations.

Investigators also are pressing for information from the Federal Reserve (news - web sites) Bank of New York, which is responsible for regulating foreign banks operating in the United States.

To which I can only add..."It's about time."

(Full article at link.)

UN O.F.F. Probe Official Out After Bush/Bin Laden Comment

TurkishPress - U.N. Oil Probe Official Out After Comparing Bush To Bin Laden

UNITED NATIONS, Sept 24 (AFP) - An official from the corruption probe into the UN's "oil-for-food" programme in Iraq resigned on Friday following reports she had compared US President George W. Bush to Osama bin Laden.

...

The resignation came after the Heritage Foundation, a Washington think tank, issued a press release noting an article that Di Lellio had written in London's Guardian newspaper two years ago.

In the piece, written on the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks in the United States, Di Lellio railed against "Bush and his puppeteers" as well as a US ally in the Iraq war, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

"With defenders like (Bush) and Berlusconi, largely unchecked by a sycophantic media, who needs bin Laden to destroy culture, personal freedom, respect for other human beings, integrity, and the rule of law -- all the things that make our lives worthwhile?" she wrote.

(Full article at link. Thanks to Ron Norman.)

U.S. Congress To Get Iraqi Documents

High Plains Journal - Iraq Oil For Food Questions/Answers

WASHINGTON (DTN) -- House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton, D-Texas, said Tuesday he and other members had visited a repository in Baghdad containing thousands of documents related to the U.N. Oil for Food program that could answer questions about the high prices the Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein paid for Australian wheat.

Barton said he believes his committee will gain access to the documents for an investigation after the State Department signs a memo of understanding with the Iraqi government to get copies.

(Full article at link.)

Bush Speech/OFF Roundup

I've had quite a few opinions and comments on Bush's UN speech and Kofi Annan's statements find their way into my inbox, particularly in light of the Oil-for-Food program.

Oliver North:

In March 2003, prior to the commencement of Operation Iraqi Freedom, I reported from Kuwait that "senior U.S. military officials were concerned that Saddam Hussein was using cash from the U.N. Oil for Food program to buy votes in the Security Council." The New York Times immediately trashed the charge -- and anonymous sources at the United Nations claimed the allegation was "preposterous" and "unfounded."

But we now know better. Since then, we have learned that cash from the Oil for Food program -- administered directly from Annan's office by one of his most trusted aides, Benon V. Sevan, was used by Saddam for everything but food. The Iraqi dictator used the U.N. provided funds to buy weapons, finance terror and enrich officials in the Communist Party of Slovakia, the Palestinian Liberation Organization and political figures in France, Libya, Syria, Indonesia and Russia. Despite the presence of U.N. administrators in Baghdad and "auditors" at the U.N. headquarters in New York, Saddam was able to offer "coupons" worth millions of barrels of Iraqi crude oil to "friendly officials," who were allowed to sell them on the market and pocket huge profits.

The Heritage Foundation:

Kofi Annan’s attack on the United States over its decision to go to war with Iraq is indicative of the insecurity running through the corridors of power (or what’s left of them) at the U.N. headquarters in New York. The prestige and reputation of the U.N. is running at an all time low. The world organization failed spectacularly to deal with the Iraqi dictatorship under Saddam Hussein, is failing to provide leadership in disarming Iran, and is weak-kneed in the face of genocide in the Sudan. At the same time, the U.N. faces serious allegations of mismanagement and corruption relating to its administration of the Iraq Oil-for-Food Program. The U.N. is a world body in steep, possibly terminal decline, struggling for relevance in the 21st Century, and Mr. Annan’s remarks only further underline his organization’s growing impotence.

Marinka Peschmann:

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's United Nation's relevance plea fell upon dour ears this week at the Fifty-ninth session General Assembly in New York. "The world needs an effective mechanism through which to seek common solutions to common problems. That is what this Organization was created for." Annan insisted, "Let's not imagine that, if we fail to make good use of it, we will find any more effective instrument." Annan's address was a huge departure from his bold BBC statements days earlier where he denounced the US's decision to go to war in Iraq calling it "illegal."

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva fortified Annan's appeal, "only an international order based on multilateralism can promote peace and sustainable development of nations. No organ is better suited than the UN for ensuring the world's convergence towards common goals."

...

What was ignored was last week's Fox News Channel report that the UN's Food-for-Oil program, a once noble humanitarian effort, had become at minimum a "$10.1 billion" cash cow for Saddam Hussein while enriching monetarily "some of America's most forceful opponents at the United Nations," including, Russia, France, China and Germany. Even worse, there is evidence "that some of the money ended up in the hands of potential terrorists"and insurgents who are fighting Americans and the coalition in Iraq.

Full articles at links. Thanks to many people.

Rosett Discusses "Oil-For-Baby-Food"

OpinionJournal - What's 'Illegal'?

When U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan opined last week to the BBC that the U.S.-led overthrow of Saddam Hussein had been "illegal," two words came instantly to my mind: baby food.

No, I'm not comparing Mr. Annan's thoughts to pabulum. He is a smart man, adept enough that even in his BBC moment of condemning the U.S. (perhaps mindful that the U.S. is the U.N.'s chief financial backer) he took the trouble to blur responsibility for his own words, amending his use of "I" to the royal "we." Said Mr. Annan: "From our point of view, from the charter point of view, it was illegal."

It's unclear exactly whose collective view Mr. Annan thinks he was authorized to express, or under what terms in the U.N. charter he casts himself on some occasions as the hapless servant of the Security Council, and at other times, such as this, as the outspoken chief judge of world law.

But if Mr. Annan wants to discuss right and wrong in Iraq, which seems to be the real issue, then it is time to talk about baby formula. Why? Because Mr. Annan's preferred means of dealing with Saddam was a mix of U.N. sanctions and the U.N. relief program called Oil-for-Food. And the heart and soul of Oil-for-Food was supposed to be the feeding of sick and hungry Iraqi babies--including the purchase by Saddam, under U.N. auspices, of large amounts of baby formula. When Oil-for-Food was launched in 1996, it was advertised by the U.N. as a response to such horrors as pictures of starving Iraqi children and alarming statistics about infant mortality in Iraq, released by one of the U.N.'s own agencies, Unicef.

It was in service of that U.N. mix of sanctions and humanitarian relief that Mr. Annan after visiting with Saddam in Iraq in 1998 returned to New York to report: "I think I can do business with him."

And oh what a lot of business the U.N. did...

As usual, read the whole thing.

(Thanks to Ron Norman.)

Lawmakers See Iraqi Oil-For-Food Documents

VOA: US Lawmakers See Iraq Documents on UN Oil for Food Program

Three members of Congress just back from Iraq say documents relating to the former U.N. Oil for Food Program appear to be secure and under the control of the Iraqi interim government. The lawmakers spoke in a news conference Tuesday about their visit to Baghdad, part of a congressional investigation into alleged corruption that is thought to have siphoned off billions of dollars from the program between 1996 and 2003.

...

Republican Congressman Joe Barton, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, says many documents are now under Iraqi interim government supervision, while others are in other locations.

He describes U.S. congressional interest in an Iraqi interim government investigation underway.

"Our investigation is not in any way to try and find fault with what they're doing in Iraq. It is to establish the evidence of who received some of the illegal vouchers, and set-asides, and payoffs, in the international community outside of Iraq," he said. "I am very confident the Iraqis are going to be able to bring to justice their citizens within Iraq that abused the program."

Congressman Barton says discussions he and two other lawmakers had in Iraq provide anecdotal evidence of corruption he says leads, in his words, very high in various organizations outside of Iraq, although he says their visit did not turn up what he calls a smoking gun document.

The lawmakers were surprised to learn that many of the documents held in Baghdad are in English.

Republican congressman Fred Upton describes one document detailing what appeared to be a questionable transaction.

"We did pull off one [document] that was in excess of $830,000 Euros to Russia, for camera equipment, SONY equipment, you know [there was] a whole bunch of stuff that was in there, and I have no idea why that would relate to the food for oil program," he added.

(Full article at link. Thanks to Ron Norman for the tip.)

Harvard Professor Opines on O.F.F. Scandal, U.N. Impact

LA Times: With Eye Toward Legacy, Annan Grasps for Order

The U.N.'s moral high ground was undermined this year by a brewing scandal over the "oil-for-food" program that allowed Iraq, under U.N. sanctions in the 1990s, to sell oil to buy humanitarian goods. Allegations that Hussein pocketed $10 billion through the program to rebuild his palaces and reinforce his army have been distracting and damaging for Annan, who waited months before responding to them.

The U.N.'s administration of the program, which concentrated on delivering goods rather than investigating reported kickbacks and corruption, is the subject of several inquiries, including an internal probe.

The Security Council has also been attacked for setting up a program that protected member countries' economic interests without ensuring accountability.

" 'Oil-for-food' is an enormous negative for the U.N.," [Harvard Human Rights Professor Michael] Ignatieff said. "The credibility of a decade of U.N. inspection, patiently accrued to the U.N., was thrown away by the incompetence and corruption of the … program. There's no doubt it's a catastrophe for the U.N.'s moral credibility."

A small mention, but significant nonetheless.

(Full article at link.)

Heritage Foundation: Is Volcker's Commission Credible?

The Heritage Foundation: The Volcker Oil-for-Food Commission: Is It Credible?

The Volcker Oil-for-Food Commission: Is It Credible? by Nile Gardiner, Ph.D., and James Phillips September 20, 2004

The U.N.'s Oil-for-Food Commission is top-heavy with distinguished luminaries but short on detail regarding its actual workforce. A truly independent inquiry into corruption at the United Nations should not be staffed by U.N. employees, former U.N. employees, or those with any significant ties to the U.N.

It is therefore surprising to discover that the official spokesman for the Commission, Anna Di Lellio, is a former United Nations official. Moreover, Ms. Di Lellio has publicly expressed contempt for the U.S. president, comparing him and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to Osama bin Laden in a September 11, 2002, interview with the Guardian.

So far, the Commission's operations and working staff have been shrouded in secrecy, with little transparency or external oversight. This must change.

(Full article at link. Thanks to Heritage Foundation staffer Andrew Grossman and reader John Jorsett for the tips.)

U.N. Backlash from O.F.F. Scandal

Fox News: Oil-for-Food Scandal Draws Scrutiny to U.N.

“I believe the U.N., parts of it, have been corrupt for years. But this went to a whole new level,” said Rep. Christopher Shays (search), R-Conn., chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations.

...

“We're talking about American lives that are being lost in an attempt to bring democracy to Iraq,” Shays said. If France, Russia, China and Germany had told Saddam it was time to back down and honor his commitments, Shays said it’s possible the United Stations may not have needed to go to war against Saddam.

...

“Paul Volcker is going to succeed or fail based on his power of persuasion and the good will of the U.N., but you're basically asking the member states to sign their own death warrant, and so it's kind of hard for me to imagine he's going to get the cooperation he wants,” Shays said.

...

Shays and Sen. Norm Coleman (search) -- leaders of two of at least five federal Oil-for-Food investigations -- have started firing off subpoenas.

“We have just begun this process,” said Coleman, R-Minn. “But we’re trying to sort out this hornet's nest of corruption, of evil. And it’s going to take a little bit of time [and] patience.”

...

Coleman said he believes the United Nations had redeemable qualities, and he hoped the investigation would lead to greater transparency and more credibility for the world body.

“I’m not willing to kind of cash it in … they’re not the Evil Empire, the United Nations,” Coleman said.

(Full article at link. Hat tip to Roger Simon.)

Side note: At this time, I am in Belgium and a long way away from any Fox News coverage. Thus, I am not able to give my thoughts on the Fox News Breaking Point special on the scandal Sunday night. Roger Simon informed me that this article pretty much summed up the contents of the show, however, I would also like to get feedback from you, the reader. If anyone else out there saw it and would like to add their opinion, please leave a note in the comments. Thanks.

Saddam Used O.F.F. Program To Buy Whiskey

NY Post: SADDAM FIGHTERS' WHISKEY BUSINESS

September 18, 2004 -- WASHINGTON — Saddam Hussein used the U.N. oil-for-food program to illegally import thousands of gallons of Johnnie Walker whiskey in order to keep his elite Republican Guard happy, according to a new report.

Fox News Channel, in a special report scheduled to air tomorrow night, quotes a U.N. whistleblower as revealing that Saddam was importing the expensive Scotch in the guise of humanitarian supplies right under the noses of U.N. inspectors.

"The Republican Guards had to be kept in good moods and they were so sophisticated in this regard that he couldn't supply them with cheap whiskey from the Far East," said Paul Conlon, who was fired in 1995 from the U.N. Sanctions Committee.

"He actually had to buy Johnnie Walker and export it via a supplier of various things to his son Uday," Conlon told Fox.

Conlon added the Scotch was probably disguised as chemicals needed for various humanitarian projects.

(Full article at link.)

Fox News With Fresh Info on OFF/Terror Connection

Fox News: Possible Saddam-Al Qaeda Link Seen in U.N. Oil-for-Food Program

LUGANO, Switzerland — Did Saddam Hussein use any of his ill-gotten billions filched from the United Nations Oil-for-Food program to help fund Al Qaeda?

Investigations have shown that the former Iraqi dictator grafted and smuggled more than $10 billion from the program that for seven years prior to Saddam's overthrow was meant to bring humanitarian aid to ordinary Iraqis. And the Sept. 11 Commission has shown a tracery of contacts between Saddam and Al Qaeda that continued after billions of Oil-for-Food dollars began pouring into Saddam's coffers and Usama bin Laden declared his infamous war on the U.S.

Now, buried in some of the United Nation's own confidential documents, clues can be seen that underscore the possibility of just such a Saddam-Al Qaeda link — clues leading to a locked door in this Swiss lakeside resort.

Be sure to catch the entire exciting article at the link, which includes this interesting tidbit:

[Editor's Note: This is the first in a series of articles about the U.N. Oil-for-Food program. Check back Sunday for the next installment and watch FOX's "Breaking Point" on Sunday at 9 p.m. EDT for an hour-long special on the Oil-for-Food program.]

A welcome relief from the dearth of Oil-for-Food news, of late. Kudos to Fox News for staying with this story.

(Thanks to reader "lobstertom" for the tip.)

Joseph Perkins on O.F.F. and Terrorism, "Allies"

The Joplin Globe: Saddam's friends, U.S. allies

Documents found in Saddam's Oil Ministry revealed that at least two participants in the oil-for-food program, both picked by Saddam, both approved by the United Nations, had terrorist ties.

One was a company - Galp International Trading Corp., linked to a Liechtenstein firm, ASAT Trust - that has been identified by the United Nations itself as "belonging to or affiliated with al-Qaida." The other was a Geneva-based subsidiary of a Saudi company, Delta Oil, which had close financial ties in the 1990s to the Taliban, which provided safe haven for Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida in Afghanistan.

...

Given the tremendous financial stake that France, Germany and Russia had in Saddam's regime, given the compromised position in which the United Nations found itself (because it sold its integrity to Saddam), there was little prospect that the United States would win their support for the war in Iraq.

And it mattered not who was in the White House. The outcome would have been the same whether it was George W. Bush or John Kerry.

(Full article at link. Thanks to Ron Norman.)

Infobank Accusations In Line With Previous Eastern European Media Stories

Radio Free Europe: Analysis: Washington Spots Belarus's Infobank As 'Primary Money-Laundering Concern'

The charges of the U.S. Treasury Department are in line with reports in some Russian, Polish, and independent Belarusian print media that have suggested links between Infobank and murky Belarusian-Iraqi trade deals. "Nezavisimaya gazeta" revealed shortly before the U.S.-led intervention in Iraq in 2003 that an obscure organization called the Iraqi-Belarus Friendship Society chartered flights from Belarus to Iraq with secret cargoes. It turned out that the society was registered at the same address as Infobank and Infobank Chairman Viktar Shastou served as head of this organization.

The Polish weekly "Wprost" in 2002 suggested links between Infobank and the trade of illegal weapons. According to "Wprost," the most important intermediaries in money-laundering operations involving Infobank were Belmetalenergo and Capital and Business Management, a company registered in Vienna. The illegally earned money from Capital and Business Management, the paper wrote, was reportedly transferred to the accounts of several dozen offshore companies in the Cayman Islands, the Isle of Man, and Jersey and subsequently transferred to foreign representations of Belarusian firms.

Finally, Ron Synovitz, an RFE/RL correspondent in Iraq, discovered in Baghdad in April 2003 a faxed letter from a tank-repair plant in Barysau. The letter was addressed to someone named Uladzislau Rachkevich. The letter suggested that the Barysau plant offered Iraq training, along with advice on additional mine-sweeping equipment on tanks and camouflaging combat vehicles. Rachkevich turned out to be the head of Systems Business Management, of which Infobank was a co-founder. Today, Rachkevich is general director of Bel-Cel, in which Infobank holds a stake.

No new information on the current Infobank investigation, but it is quite interesting that the press in Eastern Europe caught this as far back as 2002. ONe wonders why this didn't surface in the U.S. sooner in this investigation.

(Full article at link.)