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Chirac: U.N. should play important role in Iraq

Chirac waves to reporters outside the E.U. summit in Athens.
Chirac waves to reporters outside the E.U. summit in Athens.

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ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- The United Nations should play an important role in rebuilding postwar Iraq, France's President Jacques Chirac said Wednesday.

Speaking at a news conference during the European Union council meeting in Athens, Greece, Chirac, a strong opponent of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, said a central role is required because the U.N. is the "sole body" with the "competence and the legitimacy" to handle Iraq's reconstruction.

"What I'm saying is, you have to look at the problems, file by file, case by case, and solve them," Chirac said. "Find a right way to solve them. But we can't do that without the United Nations. It won't work."

Chirac said France is pushing for the United States and Britain to ensure that humanitarian aid is distributed in Iraq, that water and electricity systems are reinstated, and that civil order is restored.

On Monday, Chirac met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the two agreed on the need for rapid Iraqi humanitarian aid. Chirac urged a swift E.U.-funded airlift of seriously injured Iraqi children to hospitals in Europe.

Along with France, Security Council members Britain, Spain and Germany are working on a joint statement on the U.N.'s postwar Iraq role, and were meeting U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who is also in Athens.


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