Reply #13: Chilcot inquiry told UK did not consider Iraq regime change before 9/11, WMD tomorrow [View All]

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Whitehall refused to engage in talks about toppling Saddam but shared US concerns that containment policy was failing
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/nov/24/iraq-inquiry-head-chilcot

(snip)
Sir Peter Ricketts, who was chairman of the joint intelligence committee in 2001, told the inquiry headed by the former civil servant Sir John Chilcot that it was already clear the three elements of the containment strategy – sanctions, an incentive to lift sanctions if Saddam allowed weapons inspectors to return, and "no fly" zones over north and south Iraq were "in trouble".

Those conducting a Whitehall review early in 2001 were aware some voices in Washington were already talking about regime change, with Ricketts citing as an example an article written by the then US national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, warning that "nothing will change" in Iraq until Saddam has gone.

(snip)
Ricketts, when asked about British policy if 9/11 had not happened, said: "I'm pretty sure that we would have stuck to the policy that we had. You can see that even after 9/11. We continued to push for a push for a goods review list resolution and to urge the Americans to push that on the Russians.

"I think if 9/11 had not happened, we would have remained convinced that a strengthened sanctions regime, tightened, narrowed, was the right way to go and we would have continued to push to get weapons inspectors back in."


http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/blog/2009/nov/24/chilcot-inquiry-iraq-war
3.54pm: Chilcot winds up. He thanks people for coming. And he says tomorrow the inquiry will be taking evidence about WMD. The evidence will be "quite detailed and quite technical". But it will prepare the ground for issues that will be discussed at later hearings.