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http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_198682,00050003.htm The Hindustan Times February 28, 2003 Overwhelming majority of Russians opposed to war in Iraq: Poll Agence France-Presse Moscow, February 27 Some 87 per cent of Russians are opposed to US threats of military action in Iraq and just two per cent would support a war to force Baghdad to disarm, according to a new poll published on Thursday. Some 45 per cent of those polled by Russia's Public Opinion Foundation said they believed UN weapons inspectors should continue searching Iraq for weapons of mass destruction. The poll found that 42 per cent thought Iraq should be "left alone, international inspections stopped and international sanctions lifted." The Russian government has been one of the most outspoken opponents to US plans for war in Iraq and has urged UN weapons inspections to continue. Just 30 per cent of Russians believe efforts - notably by Russia, France and Germany - to sway the United States away from using force will be effective and 45 per cent believe the United States is set on launching war despite staunch opposition. The Public Opinion Foundation found that 49 per cent of the 1,500 Russians polled consider Iraq, a traditional Soviet-era ally, a "friendly" country - up from 39 per cent in a February 2002 poll. -------------------------------------------------------http://www.hinduonnet.com/stories/2003022803291400.htm The Hindu February 28, 2003 China, Russia stick to their stand By P. S. Suryanarayana SINGAPORE FEB. 27. The fault-lines within the power-sharing bloc of Five Permanent Members (P-5) in the United Nations Security Council today acquired a definitive edge as regards the escalating Iraq crisis. China and Russia decided to stand firm against the United States over its moves towards a declaration of war on Iraq to disarm it of its stocks and capabilities to make and deploy weapons of mass destruction. In the face of the U.S.' view on war as a viable option, China and Russia today reached `a consensus' on the feasibility of asking the international weapons inspectors to continue their work. They agreed that the U.N. Security Council "should intensify its guidance (of the inspectors) and support the inspection work." Setting themselvesfirmly against war as an option the Chinese Foreign Minister, Tang Jiaxuan, and his Russian counterpart, Igor Ivanov, maintained that the crisis be "resolved within the framework of the United Nations and through political and diplomatic means." The U.N. Security Council Resolution 1441, which covers the dos and don'ts of the ongoing inspections in Iraq, besides a host of earlier resolutions on this issue "have provided the necessary legal basis for handling (this) issue," the two leaders said in a joint communique at the conclusion of their talks in Beijing. Noting that "war can and should be avoided", the two underlined that the Security Council should be allowed to play a pivotal role in resolving the current Iraq crisis. "All the U.N. member-States should respect and safeguard the authority of the Security Council,'' they said, in a transparent reference to the U.S. President, George W. Bush's frequent assertions that the U.N. Security Council was now on test as a forum to settle sensitive political and strategic issues. The significance of the latest meeting of minds on the Sino-Russian turf is that the U.S. would now have to reckon with not only the anti-war voices across the globe but also the possible vetoes by China and Russia. On the other major strategic problem concerning North Korea's suspected programme of making weapons of mass destruction, Mr. Tang and Mr. Ivanov said they would "push for a dialogue between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the United States." The two leaders emphasised the need for "an equal and constructive dialogue" between Washington and Pyongyang on the latter's profiling as a `proliferator'. At the same time, China and Russia did not preclude the possibility of multilateral talks, involving countries other than the U.S. and the DPRK too. It is in this context that the U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell's suggestions for multilateral pressure on Pyongyang should be seen. In Gen. Powell's reckoning, China as also Russia should play a major role in bringing peace to the Korean peninsula. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more http://taxes.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bdn7KI.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^================================================================
