Thomas Daschle: “I want to address the evolving situation relating to Iraq and talk briefly about the circumstances surrounding the…”

“I want to address the evolving situation relating to Iraq and talk briefly about the circumstances surrounding the agreement reached between Secretary General Annan and Iraq as we know them now. I am concerned about some of the comments made in the media and on the floor about the situation in Iraq. I think it is important to review the situation as the President, Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, National Security Adviser and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have laid out in the last 24 hours. First, with respect to what we are seeking, from the outset of this crisis the fundamental goal of the United States has been very simple. The goal has simply been to assure that UNSCOM has unconditional and unfettered access to all suspect sites as called for in the U.N. Security Council resolutions. Period; that's it. All we needed was simply an opportunity to visit sites that we think are suspect. We were denied that, which triggered this whole affair, beginning, as everyone now knows, several months ago. Diplomacy, backed by the threat to use overwhelming force if required, has moved us forward and closer to achieving that goal. There can be no doubt that the presence of a military force of the magnitude that is currently in the gulf had everything to do with the fact that we now have an agreement.”