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Blair: Iraqi regime 'revolting'
SWANSEA, Wales (CNN) -- Removing Saddam Hussein would be ridding the world "of one of the most revolting regimes in history," British Prime Minister Tony Blair has said. In a keynote and impassioned speech to a political conference on Friday, Blair said Iraq, in "plain defiance of U.N. resolutions for 12 years," has shown that it has no fears of using weapons of mass destruction. He said the Iraqi agreement in principle to destroy its Al Samoud 2 missiles did not indicate a change. (Full story) Speaking to delegates at a meeting of the Wales Labour Party, he said: "Saddam will play his game, throwing out concessions to divide us, weaken our will. He has done it 12 long years. He is at it now. "Does anyone really think he would be making these concessions if not for the army camped on his doorstep? "People say, 'Ah, but what you are saying is, it doesn't matter what he does, he'll never satisfy you.' "In fact, he knows exactly what he has to do to satisfy us." Blair said the United Nations must enforce its resolutions and strip Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction to deter their use by any others. "If we do not take a stand now against the growth of this chemical, biological and nuclear weapons threat, then at some point a state or a terror group pursuing extremism, with no care for human life, will use such weapons," he said. "And not just Britain, but the world will be plunged into a living nightmare from which we will struggle long and hard to awake." The prime minister, who faces a strong anti-war movement in Britain and even from within his own party, said he "passionately wants this resolved through" the United Nations. "But ... multilateralism has to be the means achieving our objective, not the means of avoiding its achievement," he said. On Wednesday night, the House of Commons backed Blair's stance on Iraq, but not before he faced a massive vote by many in his own Labour Party against any war with Iraq. (Full story) He told the Welsh conference the world must not stop at Iraq if it wants to bring stability to a region that has rarely known peace in modern times. "I do not believe the Arab world supports Saddam, but they and the rest of world know there will be no lasting security in that region until there is a lasting, durable and just peace between Israel and the Palestinians," he said to rousing cheers. He also issued a dire warning about the consequences of believing Saddam and allowing Iraq to continue as it is now.
"To those people who say we encourage more terrorism by enforcing the U.N. will -- does anyone think that if we retreat now, the terrorists will reward us, will respect us?" Blair said. "That they will fold up their machinery of death and simply disappear?" "If we think so it is a cruel delusion," he said. "If we fail this, the first test of our determination, it will not be the end. It will only be the beginning." Earlier on Friday, Blair met with Spain's Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar when the pair dismissed Iraq's announcement that it will destroy contentious missiles as "games" and "not enough." (Full story)
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