Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain, America's closest ally in Iraq, said today that the unconventional weapons cited as a justification for the war against Saddam Hussein might never be found.
It was the closest Mr. Blair has come to acknowledging that his central argument for last year's invasion in the face of widespread public opposition may never be proven true or false. Mr. Blair's handling of the weapons issue has damaged his credibility and his popularity with voters, while his decision to support the American-led war is depicted as the defining event of his premiership.
"We know Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, but we know we haven't found them," Mr. Blair said, addressing senior government and opposition legislators at a routine meeting. "I have to accept we have not found them, that we may not find them."
Mr. Blair suggested that unlawful weapons "could have been removed, could have been hidden, they could have been destroyed." But he maintained that Saddam Hussein had been a threat and had been in breach of United Nations resolutions concerning unlawful weapons.
Mr. Blair declined to offer an apology for going to war as the junior partner in an alliance with the United States.
"I do not believe there was not a threat in relation to weapons of mass destruction," he said.
Mr. Blair's comments were taken by his political adversaries as evidence that his reasons forgoing to war had been mistaken.
"The fact is we went to war for the wrong reasons," said Edward Leigh, a member of the opposition Conservatives who also supported the invasion of Iraq. "There was no threat at the relevant time. This is the defining issue of his premiership."
Mr. Blair was speaking eight days before an official inquiry by Lord Frederick Butler makes public a report into a wide range of concerns about Iraq's weapon systems.
The question of whether Saddam Hussein was, in fact, able to deploy biological, chemical or other unlawful weapons has been a sensitive issue since the government published a statement in September 2002 that some weapons could have been made operational within 45 minutes.
But in over one year since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, no weapons of mass destruction — WMD — have been discovered. Mr. Blair insisted today, however, "It is very important not to go to the other extreme and say that because we have not found WMD that he was not a threat."
Underlying the dispute over Iraq is a sense among some Britons that Mr. Blair became too close to President George W. Bush, offering support over Iraq but winning little in return.
But Mr. Blair said today that his country had shown its influence in the strategy of handing sovereignty to an Iraqi government and other developments.
"If you look at what has happened in Iraq recently, I think we have a very great deal of influence."
Mr. Blair's foes have also accused him of forfeiting his relationships with European allies as he pursues ever-closer ties with the United States. He rejected that suggestion today, saying he had a "good relationship" with France and Germany. He insisted, however, that he would not permit his ties with the White House to be "subordinated to the interests of any other country."
Mr. Blair has been assailed by critics for failing to secure the release of four Britons held by the United States authorities in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But Mr. Blair said Britain did not have what he called the "machinery" to ensure that the four detainees would not pose a security threat if they were handed over to Britain.
At the same time, though, he called the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay frequently assailed by British civil rights activists as unlawful an "anomaly that has at some point got to be brought to an end."
Mr. Blair's political fortunes have been dogged by the war in Iraq, leaving him struggling to climb back in his second term to the popularity that provided the sobriquet "Teflon Tony" in his first term from 1997. But his status sometimes seems ambiguous in light of the options facing British voters.
For instance, an opinion survey published today in The Times of London said the number of Britons who thought the war in Iraq had been a "good thing" had fallen from 65 per cent in April 2003 just after the invasion to just under 40 percent.
At the same time, the survey, taken by telephone among 1,000 people aged over 18 last weekend, showed that Mr. Blair's Labor Party had gained in popularity with some 33 percent of the respondents saying they would vote Labor in a general election compared to 31 percent in early June. The poll also showed that the opposition Conservatives had been damaged by the relatively strong showing in recent European Parliament elections of the anti-European U.K. Independence Party.
Mr. Blair's own popularity seemed also to have recovered somewhat, according to the poll, giving him a clear edge over both Michael Howard, the Conservative leader, and Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, seen as Mr. Blair's rival within the Labor Party.
CBC News
It was the closest Mr. Blair has come to acknowledging that his central argument for last year's invasion in the face of widespread public opposition may never be proven true or false. Mr. Blair's handling of the weapons issue has damaged his credibility and his popularity with voters, while his decision to support the American-led war is depicted as the defining event of his premiership.
"We know Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, but we know we haven't found them," Mr. Blair said, addressing senior government and opposition legislators at a routine meeting. "I have to accept we have not found them, that we may not find them."
Mr. Blair suggested that unlawful weapons "could have been removed, could have been hidden, they could have been destroyed." But he maintained that Saddam Hussein had been a threat and had been in breach of United Nations resolutions concerning unlawful weapons.
Mr. Blair declined to offer an apology for going to war as the junior partner in an alliance with the United States.
"I do not believe there was not a threat in relation to weapons of mass destruction," he said.
Mr. Blair's comments were taken by his political adversaries as evidence that his reasons forgoing to war had been mistaken.
"The fact is we went to war for the wrong reasons," said Edward Leigh, a member of the opposition Conservatives who also supported the invasion of Iraq. "There was no threat at the relevant time. This is the defining issue of his premiership."
Mr. Blair was speaking eight days before an official inquiry by Lord Frederick Butler makes public a report into a wide range of concerns about Iraq's weapon systems.
The question of whether Saddam Hussein was, in fact, able to deploy biological, chemical or other unlawful weapons has been a sensitive issue since the government published a statement in September 2002 that some weapons could have been made operational within 45 minutes.
But in over one year since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, no weapons of mass destruction — WMD — have been discovered. Mr. Blair insisted today, however, "It is very important not to go to the other extreme and say that because we have not found WMD that he was not a threat."
Underlying the dispute over Iraq is a sense among some Britons that Mr. Blair became too close to President George W. Bush, offering support over Iraq but winning little in return.
But Mr. Blair said today that his country had shown its influence in the strategy of handing sovereignty to an Iraqi government and other developments.
"If you look at what has happened in Iraq recently, I think we have a very great deal of influence."
Mr. Blair's foes have also accused him of forfeiting his relationships with European allies as he pursues ever-closer ties with the United States. He rejected that suggestion today, saying he had a "good relationship" with France and Germany. He insisted, however, that he would not permit his ties with the White House to be "subordinated to the interests of any other country."
Mr. Blair has been assailed by critics for failing to secure the release of four Britons held by the United States authorities in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But Mr. Blair said Britain did not have what he called the "machinery" to ensure that the four detainees would not pose a security threat if they were handed over to Britain.
At the same time, though, he called the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay frequently assailed by British civil rights activists as unlawful an "anomaly that has at some point got to be brought to an end."
Mr. Blair's political fortunes have been dogged by the war in Iraq, leaving him struggling to climb back in his second term to the popularity that provided the sobriquet "Teflon Tony" in his first term from 1997. But his status sometimes seems ambiguous in light of the options facing British voters.
For instance, an opinion survey published today in The Times of London said the number of Britons who thought the war in Iraq had been a "good thing" had fallen from 65 per cent in April 2003 just after the invasion to just under 40 percent.
At the same time, the survey, taken by telephone among 1,000 people aged over 18 last weekend, showed that Mr. Blair's Labor Party had gained in popularity with some 33 percent of the respondents saying they would vote Labor in a general election compared to 31 percent in early June. The poll also showed that the opposition Conservatives had been damaged by the relatively strong showing in recent European Parliament elections of the anti-European U.K. Independence Party.
Mr. Blair's own popularity seemed also to have recovered somewhat, according to the poll, giving him a clear edge over both Michael Howard, the Conservative leader, and Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, seen as Mr. Blair's rival within the Labor Party.
CBC News
