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U.S. Likely to Delay Restructuring of U.N. Sanctions on Iraq The United States is likely to delay its efforts to restructure U.N. economic sanctions on Iraq and instead accept a continuation of the current oil-for-food program for another six months, U.S. and diplomatic sources told the Washington Post. Senior U.S. officials have not made a final decision on whether they will delay plans to promote a plan for so-called smart sanctions—designed to alleviate restrictions on civilian goods while tightening controls on military-oriented imports—but "that's where we seem to be going," a State Department official told the Post. Since early in U.S. President George W. Bush's term, administration officials have said they wanted to change the sanctions system when it comes up for renewal Dec. 3. The sanctions were imposed after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. Russia, which has said it wants to suspend sanctions against Iraq, has opposed the U.S. restructuring plan and could veto the proposal in the U.N. Security Council. Since the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington, the United States has placed priority on Russian assistance in anti-terrorism efforts and negotiations to modify the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty to allow U.S. plans to develop a national missile defense system. The United States therefore prefers to avoid an argument with Russia over sanctions, U.S. sources told the Post. Another possible reason to delay action on sanctions could be concerns that restructuring the sanctions might create the impression the United States was easing pressure on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "There is some concern that any refining changes to the sanctions regime could be seen as lessening the burden on Saddam Hussein ... It's not the message the U.S. would like to send" in the current anti-terrorism atmosphere, said one diplomat. The United States, however, has come under strong criticism that the sanctions cause suffering among Iraqi civilians, and easing prohibitions on civilian-oriented goods could improve the U.S. image in the Middle East (Alan Sipress, Washington Post, Nov. 7).
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