IRAQ: STATEMENT OF NIKOLAJ KHRAMOV, SECRETARY OF ANTIMILITARIST RADICAL ASSOCIATION

Moscow, December 20, 1998

``Last days we witnessed how the United States and Great Britain have undertaken and with success have fulfilled mission on disarmament of the terrorist and dictatorial regime of Saddam Hussein. America and England once again has shown, that they are able to face challenge from those who openly spits on UN resolutions, and to give an adequate answer. My sympathies, sympathy of many my companions - Russian radicals and liberals were these days on Clinton's and Blair's side.

Certainly, we grieve on several Iraq citizens who have lost during the Desert Fox operation (though we fully realize, that Americans and Englishmen have done the utmost to reduce to a minimum human losses). But by the same way we also grieve on inhabitants of German cities which have lost during the war against Nazism. But it does not make the action on prevention of bacteriological and chemical threat outgoing from criminal regime of Baghdad, less legitimate than the struggle conducted half-century ago against nazist "plague".

It is senseless to complain that the British-American military action was carried out besides UN Security Council. In the Security Council the right of veto uses our country: a country, openly supporting war criminals, all terrorist and dictatorial regimes in the world, a country in whose parliament more and more open and unpunishedly sound the statements which were pronounced last time in the "parliament" of the Third Reich. What kind of security, what kind of peace can guarantee such a Security Council? In this situation the only remaining super power has shown enough force and determination to put back on its place the Baghdad regime and to reject at least for one year back its ability to creation of the weapon of mass destruction.

As to the reaction on events in Iraq from side of "Russia" (that Russia, which diligently is attempting to be imposed us from telescreens), it is quite logical. All communist, frankly fascist, anti-semitic, anti-western, anti-liberal, militarist, revenge and chauvinist forces have merged with pacifists and "humanitarians" of all kinds in a sort of solemn anti-American symphony. "Tomorrow they will bomb us!" - these unanimous cries of owners of caps flared up at once on their heads are can be heard faraway in all directions. Okay, it only proves ones more that significant part of Russian political establishment takes an example with Saddam (as well as with Milosevic), planning to challenge international community by the same way.

The regime, losing last rests of common sense, inflates a real militarist hysteria. In Okhotny Ryad a crowd demand to increase military expenditures, which already without that count 33% in the draft budget for 1999. Government and president give the order to put in battle readiness the Pacific Fleet, but its warships can leave their harbors only if they will receive a little diesel fuel as humanitarian aid from "American aggressors". At the same time, paradoxically, the government continues to beg for the IMF credits and to request the food help from America and Europe.

In this situation I, as citizen of other Russia, can be pleased only with one circumstance: our deep-brown State Duma and piebald government have decided to bury ratification of SOA 2. It means, that not having means for maintenance of the present nuclear arsenal, Russia has all chances to turn shortly in a nuclear-free country, and ours redbrown - to farewell any hopes to expect other approach, than to Saddam or Milosevic.''