Foreign Minister Tuomioja: Proposed UN Iraq session should be evaluated against how to keep the UN effective

The Women for Peace group presented Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja with an appeal today demanding end to the war in Iraq. It was stated in the appeal that the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in 1950 called Uniting for Peace which established a procedure for action even after the General Assembly was paralysed. Since no country has a veto right at the General Assembly, a Uniting for Peace session can adopt a resolution demanding cessasion of military hostilities.

Many messages sent to the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs have included an appeal for peace, said Tuomioja. Particularly, people have urged Finland to support the so called Uniting for Peace procedure allowing a General Assembly session on the Iraq war.

“Uniting for Peace was adopted at a time in 1950 when the veto procedure had rendered the Security Council unable to act. Presently, we do not have such a situation as no new resolution proposal on the use of force has been put for vote since the adoption of the resolution 1441. Instead, the Security Council has approved the re-launch of the Oil-for-food programme”, said Tuomioja.

“No offical request to call a General Assembly has been made. Finland is primarily concerned that the effectiveness of the UN and secondly that of the EU can be guaranteed. The EU countries have demanded a leading role for the UN concerning Iraq, whether we talk about political decisions or reconstruction and humanitarian assistance. A proposed special session should be evaluated also against whether it would weaken or strengthen these endeavours”, he said.

“If there is a real chance that the war would end with the help of the special session, the option should be exercised. The present situation, however, does not speak for it. A likely result would be a resolution - by even a significant majority – condemning military action, but such a decision would only serve as a moral judgment without binding the member states or having any impact on the actions of the war coalition. An emergency session could in the worst scenario result in temporarily weakening the chances of the UN to take responsibility for the situation in Iraq”, said Tuomioja.

“All these options and their consequences are constantly being pondered by the UN member states. Should a motion for an emergency session be made, the EU should reach a joint position without objections”, emphasised Tuomioja.

“Decisions on Iraq that can be executed can only and with certainty be made at the Security Council. This view guides us when we consider various options of the UN on Iraq”, he added.

“To wage war without a UN mandate was not acceptable nor justified. We fear that the war will also reflect in many ways negatively on the process of strengthening security and international rule of law”, said Tuomioja.

Further information: Susanna Parkkonen, press assistant to the minister, tel. +358 9 160 55012, gsm. + 358 40 545 1275