The Hindu : 'U.S. wants to control oil supplies'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 05, 2002

International

International

'U.S. wants to control oil supplies'

By Atul Aneja

MANAMA (BAHRAIN) SEPT. 4. The Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, has accused the United States of seeking world domination by controlling oil supplies in the Persian Gulf and by denying nuclear weapons to other countries.

During talks in Baghdad with the visiting special envoy of the Belarus President, Alexander Lukashinko, Mr. Hussein reportedly said the U.S. desire to dominate the entire world would become "ineffectual" if some countries were allowed to possess nuclear weapons.

The U.S. accuses Iraq of seeking to acquire mass destruction weapons, including nuclear bombs.

According to the State-run Iraq News Agency (INA), Mr. Hussein said the U.S. assumed that it would be close to achieving global domination if it controlled the 65 per cent of the world's energy reserves that were located in West Asia.

Iraq, which holds the second largest oil reserves in the world after Saudi Arabia, was being targeted because it was an obstacle in the fulfilment of U.S. designs.

By controlling the oil supply, the U.S., Mr. Hussein alleged, would curb the economic development of many countries, while ensuring that its own economy registered a "continuous circle of development."

He added that the countries which would suffer on account of the U.S. control over world oil supplies and prices included China, Japan and France.

Given the "grand design" of the U.S., it was important for "all patriotic individuals to rise and confront Washington's moves", Mr. Hussein was reported to have said.

Meanwhile, Iraq continued its efforts to persuade key U.N. Security Council members to prevail on Washington to change its plan of seeking a regime change in Baghdad.

After concluding a visit to China, the Iraqi Foreign Minister, Naji Sabri, is now visiting Russia for talks with his counterpart, Mr. Igor Ivanov. Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, who is in Johannesburg to attend the earth summit, met the Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez there. Venezuela is a member of OPEC.

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